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SALT LAKE CITY — A Roy man admitted he was part of a group that recklessly caused a death at a grocery store in South Salt Lake, and attempted to rob the man using force or fear.
On May 9, 2022, the man and three others were allegedly involved in a fatal shooting of Romeo Charles Stevens, 27, during a robbery attempt. The incident occurred in a South Salt Lake WinCo parking lot.
Damian Stafon Coleman Jr., 28, pleaded guilty on July 28 to manslaughter, a second-degree felony, and aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony.
In his statement supporting the plea, he said the four were attempting to take the man's phone, which they believed contained electronic currency, and during that process, the man was shot and killed by a "co-conspirator."
As a condition of his plea, a murder charge was downgraded to manslaughter and a charge for obstructing justice was dismissed.
McKennalyn Elizabeth Cummins, 25, of Portage; Terell Jones, 31, of Roy; and Stafon Dshawn Coleman, 22, of Roy, were also charged in the same case, but were not arrested on warrants until later. They are each charged with murder and aggravated robbery, first-degree felonies, and obstructing justice, a second-degree felony.
The father, stepmother, sister and girlfriend of Stafon Coleman are also charged with obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony, after police said they helped the three murder suspects avoid arrest.
Surveillance video collected by investigators found that Stevens and Cummins entered the store together and while they were there, two cars pulled up and multiple people got out and waited near Stevens' car. When Stevens exited the WinCo, the others stood up and Stevens ran, charging documents said.
Jones and Damian Coleman ran after Stevens, as Stafon Coleman drove after them.
Stevens' body was found near the entrance to the store, charging documents said. An autopsy determined he had been shot three times.
Cummins was in a vehicle when officers arrived and said she was going to get food with Stevens, who she met on Snapchat, and agreed to go on a date with him. However, charging documents said Damian Coleman told officers he, his stepbrother, Jones, and his brother, Stafon Coleman, had planned the robbery and arranged it with Cummins.
The other three defendants were booked into the Salt Lake County Jail by January and they will return to court on Sept. 26 for a decision on their preliminary hearing.
A sentencing date for Damian Coleman has not been set. The case will be put on hold while the other three move forward so the four could be sentenced in the same hearing.
