Three charged in Cass County murder
Three Cass County men were charged Friday with killing a man they thought had tipped off residents of a planned home invasion and robbery.
On Thursday, one of the suspects told investigators where they could find the body of Miles Cashell, 20, of Belton. The victim had been shot in the back of the head and his body covered with brush in a field south of Belton.
The murder occurred Sept. 23.
The defendants are Keegan Curtis, 19, of Raymore; Kenny Bowman, 20, of Belton; and Edmond Lynch, 46, also of Belton.
According to court records, a woman told police that she and Cashell were awakened about 2 a.m. on Sept. 23 by Curtis and Bowman, who entered her apartment unannounced. They asked Cashell to go with them. She watched the men leave and later told police Lynch was also in the car.
The two men returned about two hours later without Cashell. They then asked the woman to go with them but she refused. She noticed they had guns in their belts. Curtis, documents say, told the woman to “lock her door and watch her back.”
During questioning Thursday, Bowman told police the men had planned a home invasion, but when they got to the house the residents had been tipped off. They blamed Cashell. Documents say that Bowman told police they returned to the apartment because they planned to killthe woman, too.
Curtis, the alleged shooter, is charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, kidnapping, tampering with physical evidence and abandonment of a corpse.
Bowman was charged as an accessory to first-degree murder, armed criminal action, an accessory to kidnapping, an accessory to tampering with physical evidence in felony prosecution and abandonment of a corpse.
Lynch was charged as an accessory to second-degree murder or felony murder, being an accessory to kidnapping, an accessory to tampering with physical evidence in felony prosecution and abandonment of a corpse.
The men will be held on $1 million bonds.
To reach Donald Bradley, call 816-234-4182 or send email to dbradley@kcstar.com.
This story was originally published October 3, 2014 at 1:20 PM with the headline "Three charged in Cass County murder."