San Pedro Man Pleads Guilty to Abetment in 2023 Murder of Kean Quiros

A San Pedro man who was initially charged with murder in connection with the 2023 killing of Kean Quiros has entered a plea agreement with the Crown and pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of abetment to murder.  26-year-old Jaylil Usher of the San Mateo area appeared today before Justice Nigel Pilgrim in the High Court, where he admitted to facilitating the murder of Quiros, who was fatally shot inside his home on August 11, 2023.  Usher had originally been charged and indicted for murder following an investigation that linked an AK-47 rifle found in his possession to the fatal shooting. Under the plea agreement reached with prosecutors, however, Usher pleaded guilty to abetment to murder, acknowledging that he played a role in making the weapon used in the crime available.  Justice Pilgrim has reserved sentencing until June 26, when mitigation submissions will be heard on Usher’s behalf. He is represented by attorney Norman Rodriguez.  The facts presented to the court revealed that shortly after 3:00 on the morning of August 11, 2023, several gunshots rang out at a residence in the San Mateo area of San Pedro Town. Family members found Quiros suffering from multiple gunshot wounds inside his room. He was rushed to the San Pedro Polyclinic but later succumbed to his injuries.

Crime scene investigators recovered eleven expended shell casings from the scene.  Less than a month later, on September 5, 2023, police searched Usher’s residence in the San Mateo area and discovered a Chinese-made AK-47 rifle with an obliterated serial number hidden inside a pillowcase on his bed, along with an empty magazine.  According to investigators, Usher admitted the firearm had been in his possession for several years and told police he had purchased it for between three hundred and five hundred dollars.  Forensic testing later established a direct connection between the rifle and the murder. Firearms examiner of the National Forensic Science Service Laboratory concluded that all eleven shell casings recovered from the crime scene had been fired from the AK-47 found in Usher’s room.  Investigators also learned that Quiros had reportedly been involved in a dispute about a month before his death with an individual known as “Powa” from the San Mateo area. During a police interview, Usher acknowledged that he was also known by the aliases “Power Jr.” and “J. Lion.”  The prosecution’s case established that Usher facilitated the commission of the murder by making the AK-47 rifle available and enabling access to the weapon used in the fatal shooting.  At the time of the offence, Usher was twenty-four years old and had a criminal record that included convictions for drug possession, keeping a prohibited firearm, possession of a firearm with a removed serial number, escape from lawful custody, and damage to property.