A Philly man wanted in the ATM slaying of a 69-year-old was arrested after more than a year on the run
One of two men accused of killing 69-year-old James Watson last year was arrested Sunday, authorities said.
A Philadelphia man who’d been on the run for more than a year after he was accused of killing a 69-year-old man who was withdrawing money from an ATM in Germantown last year has been arrested, authorities said Tuesday.
Kyree Dennis, 24, one of two men accused of killing James Watson during an attempted robbery last March, was taken into custody on the 3400 block of Marshall Street on Sunday night after a short foot chase, District Attorney Larry Krasner said. Dennis was charged with murder, conspiracy, and related crimes.
The other man charged in the crime, Corey X. Thompson of Chichester Township, was arrested last March and charged with murder, firearms violations, and related offenses.
Shortly after 8 p.m. March 3, 2022, Watson stopped into the ATM vestibule of the Citizens Bank branch on Germantown Avenue to withdraw $400 for his granddaughter, who had broken her foot and was unable to run the errand, his family said.
While Watson was inside, authorities said, Dennis and Thompson confronted him, wearing hoodies, face masks, and skull caps. After a brief struggle, Dennis fired a handgun at Watson, grazing his chest and penetrating his abdomen, police said.
When officers arrived, they found Watson on the vestibule floor, and he was pronounced dead minutes later. While the two men fled without taking the cash Watson had withdrawn, police believe the motive for the shooting was robbery.
Watson’s great-grandson Tymir Alston-Haywood has said Watson’s last act, helping his injured granddaughter, spoke to his kind and caring nature.
“He was a very positive, very charming guy,” Alston-Haywood said. “Very lovable. Everybody liked him.”