APD: Man faces capital murder charge after botched drug deal in south Austin

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A man faces a capital murder charge after Austin police accused him of shooting someone during a botched drug deal Feb. 23 in south Austin, an arrest affidavit said.

Sevon Herman Randle, 19, was arrested in connection with the shooting death of Jacob Andrew Turner outside a gas station on Ben White Boulevard. According to the affidavit, a witness said Randle confessed to shooting Turner.

In a statement to KXAN, Leslie Booker, the attorney representing Randle, said her client "is not guilty of capital murder."

"The lead detective in this case acted hastily in filing these charges against Mr. Randle," Booker said. "Hopefully the District Attorney's Office will agree."

The affidavit said Randle was going to buy "at least 50 Percocet M30 pills" from Turner, but the two couldn't agree on a price. APD suspects the pills were laced with fentanyl, according to the affidavit.

While in a Mercedez-Benz sedan to do the drug deal, the two got in a fight when Randle made an offer that was too low for Turner, according to the witness APD interviewed. Turner snapped one of the pills in half, then Randle snorted in an effort to check for quality, the affidavit said. Turner said he needed more money from Randle for the pills, the affidavit said, and then Randle pulled a gun on Turner and shot him.

The witness APD interviewed, who drove the car to the scene to complete the transaction, said Randle killed Turner "for no reason whatsoever," according to the affidavit. Turner's body was found face-down with the pills next to him, some scattered near him and some in a small baggie, the affidavit said.

After the shooting, the witness told APD that Randle bragged about killing Turner, saying it "raised his body count," the affidavit said. APD found that Randle had previous arrests in 2021 including a weapons charge and resisting arrest, the affidavit said.

After Randle left the crime scene, the affidavit said he dumped the handgun used in the shooting outside a hotel on Congress Avenue. The car was abandoned there and someone came to pick him up, and according to the affidavit, drove Randle back to an area near the crime scene where he "watched the body of Jacob Turner being placed in body bag and carted from the scene."

According to records, Randle is currently in custody at Travis County Jail.