Evidence shows that men lied about deadly shooting, Columbus police say

Evidence shows that the two men who reported the shooting on Henson Avenue lied about how the 18-year-old victim was killed, according to testimony Thursday in Columbus Recorder’s Court.

Clayton Perry, 17, and Antwuan Rashee King, 18, pleaded not guilty to one count of giving false statements in the shooting of Tremaine Taylor. They were each booked into the Muscogee County Jail under bonds totaling $2,500.

Judge Julius Hunter bound the case over to Superior Court.

Their plea comes a day after a 16-year-old boy was charged with murder in the shooting and 43-year-old Anthony Bernard King Sr. was charged with tampering with the evidence at the scene.

Columbus police said King and and Perry flagged down an officer at 458 Henson Ave. around 1:26 a.m. Aug. 31. They reported that Taylor was shot at that location.

Taylor was transported to Midtown Medical Center, where Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan pronounced him dead at 4:20 a.m.

Cpl. Donna Baker said they told police that a vehicle stopped at the bottom of the driveway and an occupant gestured for Taylor to approach the vehicle. They said Taylor approached the vehicle and a shot was fired from the vehicle, striking him.

Baker said another witness indicated that their account of the shooting wasn’t accurate. Shell casings belonging to a 9 mm gun were also found in a location different from where Taylor and Perry said the shooting occurred, according to police.

“The statements didn’t match the evidence,” Baker told the court.

Police also said King Sr. tampered with the victim’s blood and vomit on the day of the shooting. That evidence was found on his carport at 458 Henson Ave., officials said.

Thursday’s hearing was held about a week after Perry pleaded not guilty to murder in Columbus Recorder’s Court in the Aug. 15 shooting of James Francesconi. The 26-year-old man was killed and robbed at his home at 228 Wickam Drive, authorities said.

During the Oct. 23 hearing, Cpl. Robert Nicholas said Perry was arrested the day of Taylor’s death on unrelated charges stemming from a massive burglary ring involving Zo’ Hannon gang members. It’s a subset of the Gangster Disciples, which authorities said is the largest gang operating in Columbus.

Nicholas said Perry was being interviewed when he accused Taylor of killing Francesconi. He reported that Taylor had “money on his head from gang members in Columbus for having been involved in the shooting,” Nicholas testified.

In the following weeks, multiple people called detectives reporting that Taylor and Perry were involved in the Wickam Drive shooting. A Zo’ Hannon gang member told detectives he heard Taylor and Perry talking about robbing and killing the victim, according to police.

“This individual was able provide to us some of the details of what they heard Mr. Perry talking about,” Nicholas told the court. “Those details were absolutely accurate to details and evidence that were on the scene and documented by our id techs having been at the scene. This is information that was not part of the original report of the shooting and information that has not in anyway been released to the public.”

This story was originally published November 2, 2017 at 11:42 AM with the headline "Evidence shows that men lied about deadly shooting, Columbus police say."