ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) - An eastern Missouri man has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for killing a friend in an argument over a drug debt.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Robert A. Claybrook pleaded guilty this week to second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of James A. Watson, also of St. Charles.
Watson’s body was found by police in May 2019 in a field near Silex, Missouri. He had been shot several times. Claybrook admitted in court that he shot Watson during an argument.
Police said one of Claybrook’s friends owed Watson $25 for marijuana. The friend told police that Watson had threatened to shoot one or more of the friend’s relatives over the sum, and Claybrook said he would “take care of it,” court documents said.
Watson’s brother, Arron Kleckner, told the newspaper that Claybrook and Watson had been close friends. Kleckner described his brother as a loving father of two who fell on hard times and started selling marijuana to make money.
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