Cedar Rapids man faces murder charge in shooting that left 2 dead

CEDAR RAPIDS -- A man who was injured in a deadly shooting last month at an apartment complex’s parking lot was arrested Thursday and faces a first-degree murder charge over one of the two people killed.

Cameron Armad Leonard, 25, of Cedar Rapids, faces counts of first-degree murder, intimidation with a dangerous weapon, going armed with intent, use of a dangerous weapon in the commission of a crime and persons ineligible to carry dangerous weapons, according to a news release Friday from Cedar Rapids police.

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Leonard was one of three men who police found suffering from gunshot wounds in the parking lot of 3960 Sherman St. NE when officers responded to a shooting at 8:21 p.m. Oct. 5. The other two — Myron Snyder and Maurice Brown, both 21 and both of Cedar Rapids — died from their injuries, and Leonard was taken to the hospital.

Leonard was released from the hospital after being treated, but wasn’t arrested at that time because the investigation was ongoing, Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks said Friday.

Leonard was arrested Thursday in Burlington by U.S. marshals and booked into the Des Moines County Correctional Center in Burlington. A criminal complaint detailing Leonard’s charges was not yet available Friday, but police said the charges he faces were connected specifically to the death of Snyder, not Brown.

A GoFundMe page created shortly after the shooting to help cover the cost of Brown’s funeral and Leonard’s medical expenses states that the two are brothers.

Snyder’s mother, Alicia Rogers, previously told The Gazette that Snyder had been delivering for DoorDash when the shooting started. She said her son had a concealed carry license and that she believes he was ambushed and then pulled out his own weapon in self-defense.

Snyder’s family also started a GoFundMe page to help cover funeral expenses, which had raised $4,026 as of Friday morning. The GoFundMe for Brown and Leonard’s family had raised $1,118 as of Friday.

Another arrest

Another man, Pierre Danyon Morrow, 40, of Cedar Rapids, also was arrested Thursday in relation to the shooting. Morrow is charged with being felon in possession of a firearm, accessory after the fact and obstructing prosecution or defense.

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A criminal complaint states Morrow is the stepdad of Leonard and Brown, and that police believe he hid the gun that Leonard used during the shooting.

Police found two firearms at the scene, which they determined were used by Brown and Snyder. Investigation revealed a third gun had been used, which police believe was the one that Leonard used to shoot and kill Snyder, but it was not found on scene.

A Taurus 9 mm handgun later was found at Morrow’s home in Cedar Rapids. Police believe Morrow was at the scene of the shooting and took the gun home afterward, according to the criminal complaint.

“When (Morrow) was initially interviewed, he did not tell responding officers that he had taken the gun from the crime scene and specifically said that he had seen nobody move any guns or cars from the scene,” the complaint states.

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