Man charged in Eads Bridge fatal shooting accused of another murder

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A man already in jail for a fatal shooting on the Eads Bridge in January 2024 is facing charges for another murder that happened one month prior.

According to the St. Louis County Police Department’s probable cause statement, this murder took place around 2:30 a.m. on Dec. 24, 2023, in the parking lot outside of Neat Restaurant and Bar in the 11200 block of West Florissant Avenue.

Officers found three men in the parking lot with gunshot wounds. An altercation started in the bar and ended in the parking lot with the shooting. Police learned none of the people involved were armed at the start of the fight.

All three men were taken to the hospital. Two of the victims’ injuries were not life-threatening. The third victim, identified as Kenneth Covington, later died at the hospital. Covington was 33.

Following a lengthy police investigation, homicide detectives identified Jermel X. Williams as the person who shot Covington.

The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Williams with first-degree murder and two counts of first-degree assault.

An arrest warrant was filed on Oct. 31, 2024, though Williams remains in custody in St. Louis City for the Eads Bridge shooting.

In that incident, Williams and a second man were charged with the bridge shooting, which occurred on Jan. 28, 2024. Harley Branscomb of Moberly was killed in the shooting. He was 22.

Approximately six weeks later, the St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office charged Williams with first-degree murder, first-degree assault, two counts of armed criminal action, and two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm.