Teenagers charged with murder of Kenyan man living in US
Two American teens have been charged with the murder of a Kenyan man in Des Moines, Iowa.
The two, already convicted of first degree robbery for assaulting 41-year-old Mike Wasike, will now face an additional murder charge after Wasike died in January from the injuries in the 2013 attack.
Terrence Cheeks Jr, 21, and Leshaun Murray, 20, are accused of pulling Wasike from his vehicle, severely beating him and robbing him.
The injuries left him with permanent brain injuries and he was unable to walk, talk or feed himself – until he succumbed to the injuries in January, 2018.
Cheecks, Murray, and a third person – Kennath Barry – walked in a formation in the middle of the road as Wasike approached in his vehicle.
With no space to maneuver, Wasike stopped and exited the vehicle. The three, approached him and started assaulting him.
SKULL FRACTURE
Murray struck him on the back of his head with a handgun, causing a skull fracture and brain damage.
They allegedly attacked him in a bid to steal his vehicle and make it home before the curfew.
Cheeks and Murray are already serving 50 years in prison for first degree murder while Barry, whose gun was used in the attack, is serving 17 years behind bars.
Speaking to local news channels, the father of one of the teens, Terrance Cheeks Sr. said he feared the worst for his son, who now faces first degree murder charges on top of his convicted first degree robbery charges.
The additional charges come after autopsy results showed Wasike died from the injuries sustained in the 2013 assault.
‘LESSER SENTENCE’
“I don’t condone anything that happened, but I just thought that his involvement should have resulted in a lesser sentence than what the other two received.”
Cheeks said his son, who was 15 years old at the time, had the least amount of involvement in the assault of Wasike.
He said his son did not bring the gun and did not use it to hit Wasike in the back of the head and the prison sentence should reflect that.
If convicted on first degree murder charges, the Polk County Attorney’s Office says both Cheeks and Murray could face life in prison with the possibility for parole.
Wasike moved to the US in 2009 to join his wife and children who were already living in the country. He worked as a credit analyst at Wells Fargo.
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