ST. LOUIS – Homicide detectives with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department have identified the victim in last month’s fatal shooting at the old Grand Motel and confirmed the suspect for the killing is in custody.

According to the SLMPD’s probable cause statement, the killing took place on June 28 at the former motel property, located in the 2500 block of North Grand Boulevard.

Officers found the victim, Fletcher Coats, in an alleyway, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Coats was rushed to the hospital, where he later died. He was 29.

Witnesses described hearing gunshots and then seeing a silver SUV fleeing the area after the shooting. Surveillance footage and license plate reader technology revealed the vehicle in question to be a Honda Pilot.

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Police said they saw the SUV at a gas station on July 3 and attempted a traffic stop, but the driver sped off and evaded officers. The Honda Pilot was later found abandoned in a nearby alley. Police recovered two cellphones from the vehicle.

The probable cause statement said investigators identified the suspect as Jimmie T. Gillespie Jr., 31, after speaking with other witnesses and reviewing cellphone data. One of the phone’s contained Gillespie’s CashApp information and the data was registered to “J-Beam,” which is Gillespie’s moniker on social media. That phone was used to send a text message approximately 20 minutes after the murder to a third party, stating, “1 down.”

Gillespie was arrested on July 22 in possession of a handgun. Police said the gun matched ballistics from the scene of the murder.

The St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office charged Gillespie with first-degree murder and armed criminal action. Gillespie’s arrest warrant includes a $1 million cash-only bond.

Police said Gillespie was on federal supervised release at the time of the murder. At present, Gillespie is in federal custody on an unrelated charge.

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