On the afternoon of August 14, 2025, 70-year-old Joseph Michael ’Butch’ Miner was shot dead outside a church on the 6100 block of Wagner Avenue in Wellston, St. Louis County, Missouri. Miner had been talking with two other people when the attack happened in broad daylight; he was struck in the head while seated in his vehicle.

Investigators say 39-year-old Lorenzo Ladiner, wearing a yellow security vest, walked away briefly, returned, scanned the area, then pulled a firearm from a bag and shot Miner. A police officer nearby witnessed the sequence, arrested Ladiner at the scene, and officers recovered the gun, the bag, and the vest from a nearby residence. Surveillance video reportedly recorded the incident.

Prosecutors charged Ladiner with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and unlawful possession of a firearm. Court records show Ladiner had been released from prison less than a year earlier after serving 17 years of a 20-year sentence for a prior murder; a judge set bond at $5 million.

If anyone saw Miner that afternoon or has information about the incident, please share what is known.