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A former contestant on Erica Mena’s dating reality show was found shot to death in a Missouri alley — and now a man is in custody and charged with murder.
Jardyn “Pee Wee” Walker, 23, of Ferguson, who was among the contestants vying for Mena’s attention on Zeus Network’s show, Two Ways With Erica Mena, in 2025, was reported missing on Tuesday, Jan. 20, according to a news release from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.
Walker was supposed to meet his sister at the Amazon Hazelwood facility to get a ride home, but never showed up, University City Police said, KSDK reports.
Walker was working as a delivery driver when he was shot, police said, KSDK reports.
The sister called the University City Police Department to report him missing because that’s where he was last seen, police said.
Hours later, just after 1 a.m. on Wed., Jan. 21, 2026, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department was asked to help the University City Police Department find Walker.
“Officers were directed to the rear of an alley in the area of Olive & Whittier after the missing person’s cell phone was revealed to be pinging in that area,” the SLMPD said in the statement.
“There, officers discovered a man, 23, that had been shot,” according to the SLMPD. “He died at the scene.”
Earlier on Jan. 20, officers responded to a call about shots fired in the 500 block of Whittier around 8:45 p.m., the SLMPD said.
When they got to the scene, they saw a vehicle quickly leave the area and followed it, stopping it less than a mile away at Boyle and Lindell.
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Officers found a 27-year-old man inside the vehicle, allegedly with a weapon, and took him into custody for further questioning.
The man, identified as Jamaal Jones, was arrested at 8:30 a.m. on Jan. 21 and charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and tampering with evidence, the SLMPD told PEOPLE in an email.
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department
According to a probable cause statement obtained by KSDK and Fox 2, when Jones was initially stopped and found with a rifle, he allegedly told police he was “in fear of his life” and that he had fired a weapon.
According to the probable cause statement, a witness allegedly told police that Jones and Walker were at his apartment on the night of Jan. 20 and he was in his bedroom when he heard gunshots. When he ran out of the bedroom, he said the apartment was empty, the probable cause statement alleges.
Walker had made a stop in the area for personal reasons, police have said.
Jones is being held at the St. Louis City Justice Center pending a court appearance scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 29, according to online jail records.
It is unclear whether Jones has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
Anyone with information about the incident is urged to call the Homicide Division directly at 314-444-5371. The investigation remains ongoing.
