Police name victim in Tuesday's killing; one suspect had arrest history in St. Johns County

Customers in the parking lot of Tobacco and Beverage Express on Masters Drive were replaced with TV news trucks Wednesday.

The convenience store that normally serves the St. Augustine neighborhood was the site of a robbery attempt and a shooting that left a local store clerk dead. The store was closed with its hurricane shutters pulled down tightly.

St. Augustine Police have identified the clerk as Malav Mukeshchandra Desai, 29, of St. Augustine

Police tape and most signs of the store being the scene of a crime were removed by Wednesday. But a small memorial to the victim was placed near the door. A few flowers were left near it in tribute.

For a brief, devastating period Tuesday afternoon, the day's normal business was interrupted by a teenager with a red bandanna over his face and a gun in his hand. Police believe he shot the clerk in the head before dashing out of the store and into a stolen getaway vehicle driven by his accomplice.

About two hours later, Andre Jerome Robinson Jr., 16, of Gainesville, and Sergio Demario Morgan-Wideman, 15, of St. Augustine, were in custody after being chased through Putnam County and into Green Cove Springs.

Morgan-Wideman was arrested on charges of first-degree murder and robbery, according to a release from St. Augustine Police spokesman Mark Samson.

The chase reached speeds of more then 100 mph and caused a wreck involving a Putnam County Sheriff's deputy. There were no injuries. The suspects are charged with grand theft auto related to the chase.

Morgan-Wideman has found trouble before in St. Johns County. As a 13-year-old, he was arrested on charges of grand theft of a motor vehicle, burglary, resisting without violence and violation of probation after a June 7, 2013, incident.

Friends told ActionNewsJax.com that Desai was working a 12-hour shift when attacked. They remembered him as a man who was always smiling and knew everyone's name. They said Desai was excited for his upcoming wedding.

At the store, there was a note posted that read: "We will be closed for a couple of days due to the tragedy that occurred on Tuesday. We ask everyone please to pray for the clerk and his family. We are very sorry for the inconvenience. Thank you and God bless everyone."

The St. Augustine Police Department released its report of Tuesday's shooting. It said that SAPD officers and deputies arrived at the convenience store at 70 Masters Drive shortly after the shooting. They found Desai on the floor, bleeding, and could not find a pulse.

One witness who was in the store at the time of the shooting said when the suspect came inside, he ordered all of them to the ground. She said she had noticed he was wearing something on his face but did not look very closely because she was scared.

Another witness said she had been walking into the store when the suspect grabbed her shirt in the back and placed what she thought was a gun to her head. He then pushed her through the front door.

She said once they got inside the store that he had ordered her to the ground as well.

A witness who was making a beer delivery to the store told police that he had been inside the store by the beer coolers when he heard a male voice tell two women to get on the floor. He said he ran to the back room and dialed 911 and he could hear the male yelling at the clerk to hurry and give him the money. About 15 seconds went by, and he heard a bang and the door chime going off. The witness said the suspect was carrying a small pistol with a wooden handle.

According to a report from the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office, Morgan-Wideman was accused of stealing a silver Ford Explorer and refusing to stop for deputies in 2013.

A release from the Sheriff's Office said deputies went to a home in the 4400 block of Golf Ridge Drive in the Cypress Links neighborhood in response to a report of a burglary in progress at about 1:30 a.m.

As deputies responded, they saw a 2002 Chrysler P.T. Cruiser and a 2004 silver Ford Explorer leaving the neighborhood. They tried to conduct traffic stops to see if the drivers were involved in the burglary or had any knowledge about the burglary, the report said.

One of the deputies on the scene recognized Morgan-Wideman, who was already on probation, as the driver of the Explorer.

Instead of stopping, both drivers accelerated in an attempt to elude deputies.

The driver of the P.T. Cruiser, later identified as Trevon Jamal Anderson, was chased on State Road 207. At one point, the driver slowed near State Road 312 and then struck a patrol car and sped away, the release said.

Anderson ended up crashing into Car Quest in the 300 block of S.R. 207. He was arrested on charges of grand theft, fleeing and attempting to elude a law enforcement officer, two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and driving without a license.

Morgan-Wideman pulled onto a dirt road, Peele Street, near Golf Ridge Drive. The vehicle was found a short time later in the area. Morgan-Wideman was later brought into the sheriff's office and arrested. Because he is a minor, court records for Morgan-Wideman are not available to the public.

Jim Schoettler of The Times-Union contributed to this report