MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
Troop A - 504 SE Blue Parkway - Lee's Summit, MO 64083
NEWS RELEASE
For further information please contact:
Sgt. Bill Lowe
(816) 622-0800 ext. 3159
A2020-10
June 11, 2020
EMPHASIS:
Michael J. Gullet Charged With The 2004 Murder Of A Homeless Man, The Fourth Connected To Gullet
The Missouri State Highway Patrol Division of Drug and Crime Control announces the arrest of Michael J. Gullet, 64, of Cameron, Missouri, for murder-2nd degree. The arrest stems from a Patrol investigator’s cold case homicide investigation involving Gullet. The Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office requested that the Patrol investigator interview Gullet, who was incarcerated at the Western Missouri Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri, concerning the murder of Steven A. Cassidy, of Kansas City, Missouri.
In 2016, a Division of Drug and Crime Control investigator was requested to investigate a cold case involving a 2004 homicide. During the 2016 investigation, it was determined Gullet was suspected of murdering Ryon McDonald, of Kansas City, who was described as homeless. Gullet was subsequently convicted of murder-2nd degree. As a result, he is currently incarcerated in the Western Missouri Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri.
In a separate incident in 2004, the Kansas City Police Department recovered skeletal remains and due to the decomposition of the body it was not immediately identified. In 2008, the body was identified as Steven A. Cassidy, who also was described as homeless. The Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office subsequently requested that the Patrol investigator who was involved in the Ryon McDonald investigation handle the interview with Gullet regarding the cold case homicide of Steven A. Cassidy. In December 2019, the DDCC investigator conducted an interview with Gullet regarding the death of Cassidy. This interview revealed enough evidence to seek a charge of murder-2nd degree against Michael J. Gullet for the murder of Steven A. Cassidy.
Gullett has been incarcerated since 2012 for the murder of another man in a homeless camp.
Gullet remains in custody at the Western Missouri Correctional Center in Cameron, Missouri. The charge is mere accusation and not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of the charge must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
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