A fourth member of a family has been charged in connection to the fatal shooting of a Michigan security guard after an argument about a face mask requirement for shoppers.
Brya Shatonia Bishop, 24, the sister of the man accused of firing at the guard at a Flint store is accused of tampering with evidence by wiping her phone, lying to investigators and accessory after the fact to a felony, Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said Thursday.
"We think she helped them escape," Leyton said in an interview with Detroit ABC affiliate WXYZ-TV.
Michigan State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service are searching for Bishop's brother, Ramonyea Bishop, 23, and his stepfather, Larry Teague, 44, in connection with Friday's killing at a Family Dollar store.
Authorities have said that Teague's wife, Sharmel Teague, got into an argument with security guard Calvin James Munerlyn who said her daughter needed to wear a mask in the store due to state orders aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.
She left the store and allegedly returned 20 minutes later with Larry Teague, and her son, Ramonyea Bishop.
Larry Teague accused the guard of disrespecting his wife, and Ramonyea Bishop allegedly fatally shot him, Leyton has said.
Sharmel Teague was charged Monday with first-degree murder and is in custody.
Larry Teague and Ramonyea Bishop are also charged with first-degree murder, although they have not been arrested.
Leyton said in the WXYZ-TV interview that Brya Shatonia Bishop was charged after state police searched her phone with her consent and "found out that she had wiped it clean."
He said that she made statements that made officials believe she had lied to police. "Then it became clear to us that she assisted both Teague and Bishop in escaping," the prosecutor said.
The requirement to wear masks in stores is in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, which has killed more than 4,300 people in Michigan.
Leyton said that both outstanding suspects should be considered armed and dangerous. He told the TV station that the gun used in the killing has not been recovered, but that Bishop also had "an arsenal of weapons" where he lived.
Leyton said in a statement that anyone found to be helping them will be held accountable.
Brya Shatonia Bishop was being held without bond Thursday night, according to the Genessee County Sheriff's Office inmate information line.
Online court records did not appear to list an attorney who represents her and who could speak on her behalf.
Sharmel Teague has been arraigned and is also being held without bond, Leyton's office said.
