Man charged in death of man whose body was found in trunk

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Authorities say a suburban St. Louis man fatally shot a man whom he suspected of stealing and then stuffed his body in a trunk.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that 22-year-old Matthew Mancini, of St. Charles, was charged Wednesday with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of 29-year-old Mark Burnett Jr. He is jailed on $400,000 cash only bail. No attorney is listed for him in online court records.

Police found Burnett’s body on Tuesday wrapped in plastic in the trunk of a vehicle in the garage of a home in which Mancini was present. Burnett had been shot once in the head.

Court documents say Mancini told investigators that he thought Burnett had stolen his possessions. He had Burnett kneel and then “struck him.”

___

Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com