Jesse Jones

ST. LOUIS — A 27-year-old man is accused of robbing and killing the owner of a tow truck business who was attempting to repossess a car Thursday in St. Louis' Hamilton Heights neighborhood. Dwayne Davis was charged with first-degree murder, robbery and two weapons offenses Saturday in the death of Jesse Jones, 44, of Elsberry. Jones was in the 5900 block of Hamilton Terrace Thursday to repossess a Jeep Cherokee a woman had taken out on a short-term loan from a car dealership, according to court documents. Jones' sister, Stephanie Jones, said Saturday that the woman was in the middle of moving, and her brother was helping her move belongings out of the Jeep when he was attacked. "He had a big heart," she said. "He was a big, burly man who you might cross a street when you first saw him, but he would do anything to make someone smile." St. Louis police were called at about 1 p.m. and found Jones dead with a gunshot wound outside on the residential street. He was found wearing big, furry slippers in the shape of a bear foot. "They were lucky he was wearing shoes at all!" his sister said laughing. "He loved being goofy. He loved wearing overalls with no shirt underneath it. He loved tie-dye shirts. That's him." Police tracked the alleged shooter, Davis, using a GPS device on the Jeep, which was missing from the crime scene. Investigators tracked the vehicle the day after the shooting to Cahokia Heights, where Illinois State Police attempted to stop the vehicle. The Jeep then sped off before crashing on the Poplar Street Bridge, according to court documents. Police say Davis was spotted exiting the Jeep after the crash before throwing a gun off the bridge. St. Louis police allege in charging documents that Davis told investigators that the woman who had leased the Jeep called him about the repossession, prompting him to carjack and shoot Jones. He was denied bond in the case. Stephanie Jones said Saturday that her brother loved his new wife, Chrysta, whom he married this spring. He enjoyed traveling the country on his motorcycle and reading. He is survived by an adopted adult son and a teenage daughter. "It is a huge loss for the people he loved and his family. He would drop everything and drive three states just to help us out," she said. "The world is a worse place today without him."