Man Gets Life Sentence For Murder He Insists He Did Not Commit

A 46-year-old Iowa man was sentenced to life in prison for the fatal shooting of a 21-year-old man that the former continued to insist he did not commit.

Reginald Little, of Iowa City, was convicted in November 2021 of first-degree murder in the death of Kejuan Winters during a robbery on April 20, 2020, the Associated Press reported.

Little and 24-year-old Durojaiye Rosa, also of Iowa City, planned to rob Winters because they knew he had a large stash of drugs, The Cedar Rapids Gazette reported, citing trial testimony. Winters and Rosa were roommates.

The men did not intend to kill Winters that day, police said. However, a struggle ensued at Winters' apartment during the robbery, and the 21-year-old victim was fatally shot, according to authorities.

Winters’ girlfriend and two children were in the apartment at the time but were not injured.

Last month, Rosa pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and voluntary manslaughter. His sentencing is scheduled for March 4.

A third man, identified as 34-year-old Patrick Bland of Rockford, Illinois, was also charged in connection to Winters’ death. Bland pleaded guilty in December 2021 to second-degree robbery, first-degree burglary, voluntary manslaughter and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Surveillance footage gathered in the area of the shooting identified Bland as a "principal in the homicide," Iowa City Press-Citizen reported, citing a complaint against Bland.

Bland used an illegally possessed gun in the shooting and left a cell phone that is "known to be a cell phone that he carries" at the scene before fleeing the state in a rental car, police said. He was later arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Bland is required to serve a mandatory minimum of 20 years before being eligible for parole.

A fourth man, identified as Jordan R. Hogan, was also charged in connection to the murder of Winters. The 21-year-old allegedly helped Little escape and avoid capture following the shooting, police said.

In addition, the victim's father, Tyris D. Winters, 41, and a 39-year-old man named Tony M. Watkins were charged with attempted murder in connection to a Coralville, Iowa, shooting.

Tyris allegedly confronted someone about the death of his son and then shot them twice before fleeing, according to news releases from the Coralville Police Department.