Authorities in St. Peters, Missouri say they determined who is responsible for the death of Amethyst J. Killian, 22. It was Damion Seth Delgado, 27, St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney Tim Lohmar said in a press conference on Thursday. Investigators sound confident they understand how the two people knew each other, as well as the horrifying extent to which the defendant attacked the victim. The one thing they do not assert is why it happened.
“I wish I knew a motive,” Lohmar said, explaining that Delgado did not reveal the information to authorities. “At this point, we don’t.”
St. Peters police announced last week that Killian’s body was found after her family members reported her missing on November 26. Lohmar said Friday that she–a mother of two with a third on the way–left the residence, but had not returned. In the process of looking for her, her family found her purse and nearby items of clothing. They reported this to cops, and Killian’s lifeless body was soon discovered, stashed deep into some brush in the back of a property.
Lohmar said that investigators were onto Delgado–a resident of O’Fallon, Missouri–four days after “at the latest.” Buccal swabs from the defendant tied him to blood found at the scene, including on the knife, the prosecutor said. Surveillance footage caught him 15 to 20 minutes before he met Killian, according to the official. Lohmar said that Delgado was positively identified through Department of Revenue records.
Investigators discovered that the victim used the app TextNow. They accordingly subpoenaed the company. Lohmar said they discovered that Killian’s last communication was with Delgado and that the two had scheduled a meeting.
He declined to elaborate on why they were meeting, only to say that it was a “potentially dangerous situation.” Besides this, they had no connection. Nonetheless, he said this was a “targeted” killing, not a random act. Delgado stabbed Killian more than 20 times, mostly in the head and neck, but also in the abdomen, according to Lohmar.
Delgado remains locked up at the St. Charles County Jail on a $1 million as of Friday afternoon.
Records show he pleaded not guilty in a court hearing that same day to a count each of first-degree murder, second-degree murder (for the unborn child, a boy), and armed criminal action. A bond hearing was scheduled for Wednesday. He was referenced to a public defender for representation, though none is named in the records. The St. Charles Public Defender’s office did not immediately respond to a Law&Crime request for comment.
[Mugshot via St. Peters Police Department]
