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Police: Second suspect arrested, charged with murder in shooting near Drake University

27-year-old Luis Anibal Alicea-Rodriguez is charged with first-degree murder.

DES MOINES, Iowa — A new arrest has been made in the fatal shooting of 36-year-old Sean Newman. 

According to Des Moines police, 27-year-old West Des Moines resident Luis Anibal  Alicea-Rodriguez is charged with Murder in the First Degree and Felon in Possession of A Firearm.

The Polk County Attorney's office previously dropped a first-degree murder charge against 27-year-old Michael Jermaine Jacobs in the fatal September shooting.

Officers responded to a call of a reported shooting around 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 2 in the 1300 block of 23rd Street. Once on scene, responders located the body of 36-year-old Sean Newman, who had suffered a gunshot wound. 

33-year-old Whitney Davis was arrested the following morning and charged with Murder in the First Degree. Her charge stands and she remains in the Polk County Jail.

Credit: WOI
33-year-old Whitney Ann Davis

According to the Des Moines Police Department, as the investigation continued, detectives found new evidence that "identified inconsistencies in statements provided by a witness."

The evidence was sent to the Polk County Attorney's Office, who dropped the first-degree murder charge against Jacobs.

"Further investigation has yielded evidence that a witness identification of the defendant may have been mistaken," the Polk County Attorney's Office wrote in a motion to dismiss the charge.

Polk County Jail records show Jacobs was released Tuesday night.

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