Shawnee man sentenced to 45 years in 2018 murder in Platte County

A Shawnee man was sentenced to 45 years in prison in Platte County Circuit Court on Tuesday for fatally shooting another man in 2018.

Coty Borst, 28, was sentenced to 30 years for second-degree murder and 15 years for armed criminal action consecutively for the killing of Jacob Stowers in June 2018. He will be eligible for parole after 28 and a half years.

In 2018, police responded to a residence in Houston Lake, a small city in Platte County, to find Stowers bleeding from a gunshot wound to the back. He later died at North Kansas City Hospital.

Borst testified in court that he got into an argument with Stowers and decided to shoot him while hiding behind a corner in the house because he said he believed Stowers was going to get a gun.

Borst walked into the living room and shot Stowers one time, but no other weapons were present, evidence provided in court showed. Stowers also hadn’t threatened Borst.

A witness said Borst then left the residence. Kansas City police later found him hiding in a creek bed.

“As a result of this defendant’s actions, Jacob’s parents will live the rest of their lives with pain that no parent deserves to endure—the murder of a child,” said Eric Zahnd, the Platte County prosecuting attorney. “It’s only right that this defendant will serve decades in prison.”

The Platte County Sheriff’s Department, Kansas City Police Department, Riverside Police Department and Missouri State Highway Patrol investigated the case.

This story was originally published July 16, 2020 at 8:50 PM.