First homicide in nearly three years in city during robbery gone wrong
By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times
Dajon Rowe
COATESVILLE — Five men have been charged in the fatal shooting of another man during a robbery gone wrong early Sunday, Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan said, Monday. Four of the five charged are in custody, with the fifth being sought by authorities.
The killing was the first in the city in nearly three years.
According to authorities, Dajon Rowe, 17, Steven Adams, 17, Tyler Adams,16 (Steven Adams’ brother); Demetrius Joseph, 21 and Chris Mansfield, 21 faces a range of charges including murder, robbery, conspiracy, assault, weapons possession and various other related offenses in the shooting death of Juan Antonio Jiminez on 4th Avenue, just after 2 a.m. on Oct. 4. Another unidentified man was shot in the leg and suffered non-life threatening injuries, Hogan’s office said in a statement. All will be charged as adults.
Rowe, Steven Adams, Joseph and Mansfield are in custody as police said they were still seeking the younger Adams as of Monday night.
In a statement, Hogan said the five met up to essentially “hunt” for robbery prey on the city’s streets.
Steven Adams
“The defendants were out hunting like a pack of wolves looking for prey,” Hogan said in a statement. “During the robbery, Dajon Rowe pulled a gun and shot one of the victims, killing him. Now one innocent man is dead and five young men face life in prison. This was a stupid and senseless crime with tragic consequences.”
The killing sparked an intense effort by local and county law enforcement to determine what happened and who was responsible, authorities said, using tools including video feeds, social media, as well as forensic and electronic evidence.
“The City of Coatesville Police Department in partnership with the Chester County Detectives worked tirelessly for 24 straight hours to solve the city’s first homicide since December of 2012,” City Police Chief Jack Laufer said in a statement. “The joint investigative effort resulted in the quick apprehension of four of the five (alleged) co-conspirators involved. Street crimes resulting in a homicide are exactly the type of crime that destroys the very fabric of a community. Residents of the City of Coatesville can have confidence that their police department will respond rapidly and efficiently to all such crimes, which by their very nature are so damaging to the quality of life for our citizens and the economic future of the City.”
Chris Mansfield
Although homicide was the final result, authorities said it all started with alleged plans by the five to find a target for a street robbery.
According to Hogan, the five were walking north 4th Avenue, directly past the residence at 123 4th Avenue – where they reportedly scoped out four Hispanic males on the porch of the home.
Authorities said that after walking past, the five accused agreed to rob the four men on the porch. Reportedly, they disguised themselves with masks and/or hoodies pulled over their faces. Authorities said that Rowe was carrying a 9mm semi-automatic pistol.
Around 2 a.m., the five converged on the home, police said, accosting the four men on the porch. Reportedly, they began to pat down the four men on the porch, in search of cash and valuables.
At that, point, Jiminez tried push the gun away, but the gun went off and fired through his arm and into his chest and then allegedly Rowe fired a second time, hitting another man in the leg. Then, police reports said, Mansfield allegedly punched a third man in the head, allegedly knocking him unconscious. The fourth man had already gone inside the home prior to the shooting, police reports said. After the shooting, the five fled the scene, police said.
Demetrius Joseph
Jiminez died from his wounds at Brandywine Hospital, while the other man was treated at Paoli Hispital for a single gunshot wound to the leg and was reported in stable condition.
Police said they found two 9mm shell casings at the scene. They noted that when Rowe was taken into custody later that day, he was reportedly found with a 9mm round in his pocket. A 9mm gun — which apparently had its serial number removed — the weapon police said was used in the killing, was reportedly found in Rowe’s bedroom.
All four — besides the younger Adams, who was still at large as of Monday night — were arraigned and transported to Chester County Prison without bail.
Police said that Rowe had previously been convicted of charges of receiving stolen property “related to a firearm” and could not legally possess a firearm.
Anybody with information about this incident is asked to call the Chester County Detectives at (610) 344-6866 or the Coatesville Police Department at (610) 384-2300.
