Ryan Burke, 42, had agreed to meet 18-year-old murder defendants Kobe Aust, Joseph Crane and Alexis Baumann, as well as a juvenile suspect who has not been named by police due to their age, on Sunday at his residence in Columbia “under the ruse” of them wanting to buy his iPhone 15 Pro.
Baumann told police that Crane and the juvenile “were both armed with pistols, and once back inside of her car” they admitted to shooting Burke and stealing his phone.
The group is accused of going on a robbery spree before killing Burke, during which they targeted at least two others for their phones.
Surveillance footage obtained by police shows the teens allegedly selling the phones they stole at the same Walmart following all three robberies. Detectives were able to track down the group on Monday using Flock license plate cameras to locate Baumann’s car.
All four individuals are charged with second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and armed criminal action. They are being held without bond.