Stacey Johnson, a St. James man arrested in connection with an Oct. 4 assault in Rolla on 43-year-old Steffan Harris of Rolla, is facing new charges from prosecutors after Harris died Oct. 10 after spending several days on life support.

According to Phelps County Prosecutor Taylor Banholzer, Johnson is facing a new charge of first-degree murder, upgraded from an initial charge of first-degree assault. He is also being charged with armed criminal action and possession of a controlled substance. Johnson currently remains in custody without bond, with a bond review hearing scheduled for Oct. 27.

According to a partially redacted probable cause statement filed by Det. Ian Mathews of the Rolla Police Department, police officers were dispatched to the area of Dickey Bub Farm and Home at 8:40 p.m. on Oct. 4 after reports of an assault taking place.

The statement says that, upon arrival, officers found Harris lying on the roadway on 10th Street with severe head injuries and intense bleeding.

According to a witness statement taken by police, the witness observed a male subject — later identified as Johnson — repeatedly striking Harris in the head with a metal fence post. Two more witnesses reportedly observed Harris in the roadway and attempted to perform CPR on him until emergency responders arrived.

Due to the severity of his injuries, emergency personnel transported Harris to Phelps Health via ambulance. He was then flown to University Medical Center in Columbia, where he later died.

In the probable cause statement Mathews said that he obtained surveillance footage from several nearby businesses in the course of his investigation, which led him to identify Johnson as a suspect in the assault.

Surveillance footage reportedly showed Johnson making a phone call to his mother using Midwest Petroleum’s business phone at around 8:03 p.m., prior to the assault. Footage from Midwest Petroleum showed Johnson crossing the street in the direction of Dickey Bub.

Surveillance footage obtained from Dickey Bub showed the altercation, in which Johnson was observed striking Harris multiple times with a metal fence post.

Surveillance footage from Legends Bank reportedly showed Johnson getting into a dark-colored Kia SUV and leaving the scene.

Hours later, at approximately 1:05 a.m. on Oct. 5, Johnson reportedly sent a Snapchat message saying “I’m sorry” to an individual whose name has been redacted. Using location data associated with the message, investigators determined that Johnson was residing in a campground near St. James, according to the probable cause statement.

Johnson was located at his residence in St. James and taken into custody. Johnson was found “to be in possession of a baggie containing a crystal-like substance and a glass smoking device,” which law enforcement determined to be methamphetamine, according to the probable cause statement.

After executing a search warrant for Johnson’s residence, officers reportedly found a backpack that Johnson was observed wearing during the assault. The statement also said that when Johnson was taken into custody he was wearing a pair of shorts consistent with those he was observed wearing during the assault.

Johnson remains in custody without bond. According to court records, his next bond review hearing is scheduled for Oct. 27 at 1:30 p.m. before 25th Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Clayton in Phelps County.