Two men have been arrested and charged for the shooting death of a diner in what authorities say was an apparently targeted attack in November at a restaurant at L.A. Live, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said on Thursday, March 28.
Phillip Pasco Clark, 33, of Los Angeles and Santana Jermaine Kelly, 50, of Palmdale were taken into custody on Friday, March 22, by Los Angeles police following a nearly four-month investigation into the Nov. 28 slaying of Sidney Barrett Morris in the Fixins Soul Kitchen at 800 W. Olympic Blvd., authorities said.
Clark is accused of walking into the restaurant and straight to the 43-year-old victim as he ate at the counter and fatally shooting him at about 6:15 p.m., then fleeing in a vehicle driven by a person whose identity has not been determined, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Kelly is accused of helping to plan the killing and providing supplies and support and setting fire to the getaway vehicle a day later to destroy evidence, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Los Angeles police Assistant Chief Blake Chow told reporters at a news conference that “all indications are that Mr. Morris was targeted as a victim, not the victim of (a) random act of violence.”
Chow said the arrests stemmed from “some really good high-tech investigative techniques, as well as just some good, old-fashioned detective work.”
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Scot Williams, the commanding officer of the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division, said investigators “haven’t established a connection between Mr. Morris and the suspects,” and are continuing to go through “a bunch of leads and evidence to try to figure out exactly why this happened.”
He noted that investigators had faced challenges, including Clark allegedly being “covered almost completely from head to toe” when he entered the restaurant. “We had to resort to some other investigative techniques, which I’m not going to go into detail about today to identify him and his involvement.”
Clark and Kelly are each charged with one count of murder and conspiracy to commit a crime, while Kelly is also facing a count of arson. The two pleaded not guilty on Tuesday.
If convicted as charged, both men could face life prison terms, according to the District Attorney’s Office.