Kristoff King was booked into the Pinellas County Jail on Tuesday, January 21, 2020. He is facing first degree murder charges in the death of 48 year-old Scott Jenks .
St. Petersburg Police conducted a death investigation at 1144 94th Ave N. They received a call that a man was down around 4:40 a.m. on January 14, 2020.
Officers found a 48 year-old Jenks deceased in the parking lot.
On Thursday, January 16, 2020, the St. Petersburg Police Department announced the arrest of 36 year-old Kristoff A. King. He was taken into custody by the Florida Highway Patrol in Alachua County after Troopers conducted a northbound traffic stop Interstate 75 near the 375-mile marker of a Greyhound bus.
He as booked into the Alachua County Jail and extradited to Pinellas County on January 21, 2020.
A newly released warrant for Kristoff King described some of the details of the crime. The murder reportedly occurred between the hours of 3 am to 4 am on January 14, 2020.
Jenks body was discovered by an employee of the Sports Bar and Grill at approximately 4:40 a.m. The employee was able to identify Jenks as he was a frequent patron of the sports bar. Paramedics responded to the scene where was declared deceased at 4:53 a.m.
Police reported that Jenks had been beaten and exhibited numerous injuries including shoe prints on his body. His pockets were rummaged through and contents removed. Video surveillance was reviewed from the sports bar that show Jenks leaving at approximately 3 a.m. A few minutes later, video shows a male, matching the description of King, leaving the sports bar in the same direction as Jenks.
An employee of the Sports Bar was able to identity King from the video and his receipts for alcohol were located. Detectives were able to match the shoe prints on Jenks body to the red Nike Tanjun shoes being worn by King.
Detectives traveled to the apartment of King at 9100 Dr. MLK Jr. Street north in St. Petersburg. A video camera at a nearby apartment showed King returning to his apartment at 4:36 a.m. wearing the same clothing as seen on the sports bar surveillance camera.
He was seen going through a wallet and then exiting his apartment wearing different clothing than when he entered.
Video and audio from another site where Jenks was attacked was reviewed by detectives. The footage revealed Jenks pleading and begging for the suspect to “please stop”. The beating began at approximately 3:07 a.m. and ended one hour and 19 minutes later at 4:26 a.m. The arrest warrant details the horrific audible sounds of the prolonged beating.
At one point Jenks can be heard telling the suspect, “Kris I love you we are friends. I love you. Kris don’t do this. You are my friend. Your are my friend.” The suspect with a heavy island accent continued to yell at Jenks during the beating. The suspect is heard saying to Jenks, “F**k you! F**k your white life! White mother f**ker! Don’t treat me like a street ni**er. I could shoot you. You wanna die on the ground?” The arrest warrant indicates the numerous racial epithets are indicative of a hate crime.
King is being held in the Pinellas County Jail with no bond and is also the subject of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer. Records indicate King was born in the Bahamas.