Jamie Willard

In the early morning hours of September 17, 2021, Jamie Willard, a 30-year-old White woman from Fenton, Missouri, was shot and killed inside a vacant home in Saint-Louis. The attack took place around 1:30 a.m. in the 2900 block of Kossuth Avenue in the city’s Fairground neighborhood. Another woman, 31-year-old Patrice Wimbley, was also killed in the shooting. A third woman, Mercedes Spencer, was shot in both legs but survived by playing dead.

According to Spencer’s later testimony, she and Wimbley were in the abandoned house using drugs when a man burst in and opened fire. The man, identified as Charles “Figgy” Anderson, shot Jamie Willard first. Prosecutors said Anderson’s .40-caliber pistol then jammed as he turned it on Spencer. He pulled out a revolver, shot Wimbley, and then shot Spencer in the legs. Both Willard and Wimbley died at the scene from gunshot wounds to the head and neck.

The investigation quickly focused on Anderson after the surviving victim identified him as the shooter. At the time he was named a suspect, Anderson was already in custody in the city of Jennings on unrelated charges. Evidence presented at his trial included eyewitness testimony from Spencer, ballistic analysis, phone records, and text messages. Spencer testified that Wimbley had previously been in a relationship with both her and Anderson.

In May 2025, a jury found Charles Anderson, then 66, guilty of two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Jamie Willard and Patrice Wimbley. He was also convicted of one count of first-degree assault for the attack on Mercedes Spencer, three counts of armed criminal action, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm.

On June 27, 2025, Anderson was sentenced for his crimes. He received two consecutive terms of life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murders. For the remaining charges, he was sentenced to an additional 127 years, with all terms to run consecutively. Those who knew Jamie Willard remembered her for having a “sparkling” personality and a “beautiful heart” that “lit up a room.”