Unarmed bartender shot and killed, and one robber shoots and kills a second robber

[grady]

Two thugs enter a St. Louis bar just before midnight, announce a robbery, and tell everyone to get on the floor. The bartender runs into the kitchen. He is followed by one thug, who shoots the bartender in the back and kills him.

The second thug for some reason fires toward the kitchen, and the bullet hits thug 1. Thug 2 takes thug 1 to the hospital, where thug 1 later dies.

Total take from the robbery was one wallet.

Now thug 2 and the getaway driver, thug 3, are charged with two murders.

The stupidity of it all...

'Probable' suspect in pub bartender's slaying is identified - STLtoday.com

'Probable' suspect in pub bartender's slaying is identified

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
06/03/2009

ST. LOUIS — Police this afternoon identified the fatally shot man who police are calling "a probable suspect" in the botched-robbery slaying of a bartender at the popular Maggie O'Brien's pub downtown.

Meanwhile, Maggie O'Brien's remained closed Wednesday; it is unknown when it might reopen.

Killed in the Monday night hold-up was Mike Dolan, a bartender at Maggie O'Brien's. Dolan had worked at the pub, located at 20th and Market streets, for less than a year. Before that, he had been a long-time bartender at another downtown bar: Jack Patrick's. Friends gathered at that bar Tuesday night to honor Dolan. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Police identified a man who was dropped off at Children's Hospital minutes after the robbery and shooting of Dolan as Derrick Bell, 30, of the 5000 block of Cote Brilliante. He died in surgery of a single gunshot wound to the chest.

"It has not yet been determined who shot Bell and, while we cannot say definitively that he was one of the two suspects" in the Maggie O'Brien's attack, said Police spokeswoman Erica S. Van Ross, "he is a probable suspect."

Police are working to figure out who the two men were who attacked workers and patrons at Maggie O'Brien's Monday night. Police say the pair walked in about 11 p.m., ordered beers, walked around as if they were "casing the place," then, walked out. About 11:30 p.m., the pair returned, brandished guns and announced a robbery. They ordered the five people in the pub -- three workers and two patrons -- to lie face down on the floor.

Dolan ran from behind the bar into the kitchen. While the other victims had their faces to the floor, they heard one of the robbers chase Dolan, then a series of shots fired. And, the victims heard another shot from the robber holding them at gunpoint toward the kitchen area. When those four victims knew that both the robbers had gone, they got up and found Dolan bleeding from his chest. They called police; the robbers got no money in the robbery.

A few minutes later, a companion dropped off Bell at Children's Hospital in St. Louis. Bell died in surgery at 2:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The witnesses were unable to give specific descriptions of the bandits, except that they were black men wearing white t-shirts, police said.

Dolan was rushed to the hospital; he also died in surgery at 2:26 a.m. Tuesday. An autopsy is still pending to discover exactly how many times Dolan had been shot.

Police are still looking at surveillance video at Children's Hospital to try to learn the identity of Bell's companion. There were no surveillance cameras inside Maggie O'Brien's and a rotating street camera operated by the city was of no use because it was not positioned on the business at the time of the robbery.

No arrests have been made in the case.

Two are charged in Maggie O'Brien murders - STLtoday.com

Two are charged in Maggie O'Brien murders

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
06/10/2009

ST. LOUIS -- Prosecutors charged two men today in the shooting deaths of a bartender and a fellow gunman during a robbery at Maggie O'Brien's restaurant on June 1.

Devin Mosley, 26, of the 1400 block of Central Avenue in East St. Louis, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, attempted robbery and four counts of armed criminal action.

Jacson Baker, 30, of O'Fallon, Ill., was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, attempted robbery and four counts of armed criminal action.

According to court documents, Mosley and Baker went to the restaurant-bar at 2000 Market with a third gunman -- Derrick Bell.

(Court documents refer to the third man as Derrick Anthony, but police have called him Derrick Bell.) EARLIER STORY: Two are in custody in connection with bartender's murder

According to the criminal complaint, Baker stayed outside while Bell and Mosley went inside about 11:45 p.m. They waved weapons in the air and ordered the patrons to lay face-down on the floor.

Mosley took a wallet from a patron's back pocket. At some point the bartender, Michael Dolan, 32, ran to the back of the restaurant.

Bell fired on Dolan, killing him, according to prosecutors. Then Mosley fired his weapon and struck Bell.

After the attack, the gunmen dropped Bell at a nearby hospital, where he died in surgery.

A judge set bond for Mosley at $1 million; the amount set for Baker was not immediately known.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Rock and Glock]

You can't make this stuff up.................

Condolences to the family of the barkeep

[Blackeagle]

Talk about the gang who couldn't shoot straight.

[retsupt99]

Nothing happens at bars, late at night, that interests me. Bars are just a problem magnent.
I wonder why the barkeeper didn't have a sidearm?

I hope these two remaining BG get lifetime room and board...or worse!

[Loadedtech]

Talk about the gang who couldn't shoot straight.

Thug 2 was shooting the gun sideways, you know thug style. You just cant fix stupid. To bad the bartender was shot, prayers go out to him and his family.

I wonder why the barkeeper didn't have a sidearm?

I agree, maybe he was running to the safe to retrieve it?

[ccw9mm]

Sounds like now isn't the time to look for a summer home near St. Louis.

[biasedbulldog]

My guess is either he ran to kitchen to retrieve a firearm or perhaps to draw from cover and couldn't do it in time. Sad. Wicked world.

[Bunny]

Sad about the bartender. Sounds like no great loss with the late Thug. Pissed that we'll be paying for 3 hots and a cot for Thugs 2 and 3 though. :(

[Tiny85]

Sad about the bartender. Sounds like no great loss with the late Thug. Pissed that we'll be paying for 3 hots and a cot for Thugs 2 and 3 though. :(

IDK if they leak a story about how many hundreds of dollars thug 2 got away with maybe thug 2 and 3 will kill each other thinking thug 2 is holding out

[Bunny]

IDK if they leak a story about how many hundreds of dollars thug 2 got away with maybe thug 2 and 3 will kill each other thinking thug 2 is holding out

So much the better!

[grady]

UPDATE:

Looks like it's a 3-fer, with a current 10-year employee being identified as an accomplice who provided information such as "where the cash drawers were, who was in charge of the cash, where the exits were and the best time to commit the robbery."

He is the third person to be charged with two murders stemming from this robbery.

Two dead, three hopefully behind bars for a long time, for the total robbery take of one wallet.

Police: Deadly holdup at Maggie O'Brien's was an inside job - STLtoday.com

Police: Deadly holdup at Maggie O'Brien's was an inside job
By Kim Bell
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
06/11/2009

UPDATED, 11:40 a.m. Friday, June 12, with interview with suspect's wife


ST. LOUIS -- Police have confirmed that the botched robbery that led to the death June 1 of a bartender at Maggie O'Brien's was an "inside job" by another worker who helped plan the heist.

The fourth and final suspect was identified Friday as Stephen D. Hornbuckle, 35, of East St. Louis, who has worked at the popular bar for 10 years. Police allege he gave the three robbers crucial details: where the cash drawers were, who was in charge of the cash, where the exits were and the best time to commit the robbery.

.
Hornbuckle


Hornbuckle wasn't at the bar the night of the holdup, but police say he did consult with the robbers before the crime. And he was even on the phone with them, to give them more direction, when they made a brief stop at the pub for a beer about 11 p.m. June 1, to case the place. The robbers returned a half-hour later, brandished guns and ordered three employees and two patrons to the floor inside the bar at Market and 20th streets.

Police arrested Hornbuckle as he returned to work Wednesday, his first day back on the job since the murder. Over the years, Hornbuckle worked as a dishwasher, a bus boy and bartender, said his wife, Brenda Hornbuckle.

When told of the allegations against her husband, Brenda Hornbuckle said: "I don't agree with it. Steve is not like that at all. The customers love him, all the guys love him. He's so free-spirited."

Killed in the botched holdup was bartender Mike Dolan, 32. He was shot twice in the back as he ran into a back room to try to get away from the robbers.

Hornbuckle was charged Thursday with two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of armed criminal action, one count of first-degree robbery and one count of attempted first-degree robbery. (The two murder charges are for Dolan's death and the death of one robber).

Bail was set at $1 million for Hornbuckle. Hornbuckle was in court Friday for an initial court appearance. His next court date is July 7.

Two men already have been charged in the case. They are:

* Devin Mosley, 26, of East St. Louis. Mosley was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, attempted robbery and four counts of armed criminal action.

* Jacson Baker, 30, of O'Fallon, Ill. Baker was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, attempted robbery and four counts of armed criminal action.

Mosley (left) and Baker (right)


The third alleged robber, Derrick Bell of St. Louis, was shot during the crime and died. Police say the bullet that killed Bell came from the gun of one of his accomplices, Mosley.

Police don't anticipate any more arrests in the case. Everyone who was involved is now in custody, police say.

Police said Friday that they learned fairly early in their investigation that Hornbuckle was involved. Before the holdup attempt, Hornbuckle had talked to Bell and given him extensive details to help plan the crime. And when Bell and Mosley were inside the pub, Bell even called Hornbuckle once more and was given more information about the people working in the bar at the time.

Baker was the lookout. He drove the vehicle to Maggie O'Brien's and watched outside for police. And when Bell was shot inside the pub, Baker is the one who drove Bell to the hospital and dropped him off, police say.

As the robbers held bar patrons and employees at gunpoint, Mosley took one person's wallet, police say.

Erica Van Ross, a spokeswoman for the St. Louis Police Department, said homicide detectives cracked the case with a lot of help from the public. Police got many tips from people.

"The steady flow of information caused our dedicated detectives to work many hours on little sleep -- never wanting to leave a "fresh" lead," Van Ross said in a news release Friday.

Brenda Hornbuckle said her husband was at home the night of the murder, a Monday, which was his normal night off. She woke him up when the phone calls started coming in from friends who heard about the murder on the news. "He was really puzzled, in disbelief, " she said. The Hornbuckles both went to Dolan's funeral and to the burial site, she said.

Brenda Hornbuckle said she and her husband have two daughters, ages 13 and 10, and a son, "little Steve," who is 6. She said she hasn't told the children about their father's arrest yet. She said she is trying to find a lawyer to represent her husband.

kbell@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8115

[tiwee]

These robbers were so shook they shot and killed one of their own and killed a bartender who was running away. Very scary. Nothing good happens late at night in bars.

In Missouri you can not carry in a bar. Alcohol and guns do not mix so drinking and concealed carry is out. In a bar you are at the mercy of the outlaws. Perhaps they know that.

The inside man in this robbery must have known if the bar had any protection or if his fellow bartenders carried. Another example of why your coworkers, acquaintances, and the general public should not know if you carry.

[JBJ9mm]

This is just one example of why CCW is a good thing. Can't wait to get it...however in Ohio (from what I hear) you can't carry in a bar. Which is scary for me because I do security from time to time...

[Fmr18z]

At least Mr. Mosley did something right the night of the robbery, saving the citizens of MO a lot of their tax money.