REPORT: Decorated Marine vet murdered during Facebook Marketplace sale sent heartbreaking final text

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COLUMBIA, MISSOURI: From the New York Post: The decorated Marine veteran who was fatally gunned down during a Facebook Marketplace deal gone-wrong managed to send one last heartbreaking message to his family in his final moments before he died.

Michael Ryan Burke, 42, texted his mother and sister, “I am dying, I love you,” in the immediate aftermath of being shot at his Missouri home, long-term friend Jerry Reifeiss told KRCG.

“That was just Ryan. He always put people in front of him and wanted to make sure people knew how he felt,” Reifeiss told the outlet.

After being shot at his own Columbia home Sunday, Burke managed to pick up the phone, dial 911 and give a description of his attackers to the operator.

After calling 911, Burke then sent the heart-wrenching texts to his mother and sister. He was rushed to the hospital, but did not survive.

More from KRCG:

Jerry Reifeiss met Ryan Burke 24 years ago as a fraternity brother at Mizzou’s Sigma Nu fraternity.

Reifeiss said his fraternity brother was a military hero, having performed dangerous missions in the United States military as a decorated Marine and then engaged in missionary work in Uganda, traveling the world and working security for the Trump Administration.

The Columbia Police Department announced four people have been arrested in the murder – three 18-year-olds and one juvenile:

Columbia Police have arrested one woman, two men and a male juvenile for the robbery and murder of Michael Ryan Burke, of Columbia, that occurred during a shooting Jan. 18 in the 1400 block of Ridgemont Court.

  • Alexis Baumann, 18, of Hallsville, was arrested for second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree burglary.
  • Kobe Aust, 18, of Columbia, was arrested for second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree burglary.
  • Joseph Crane, 18, of Columbia, was arrested for second-degree murder, armed criminal action, first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and unlawful use of a weapon.
  • A male juvenile was arrested for second-degree murder, armed criminal action, first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and unlawful use of a weapon.

A Facebook page called True Crime Trending shared the following details of the case:

Ryan Burke, a decorated U.S. Marine and missionary, was killed by a group of teens who set up a fake sale to steal his iPhone, police say.

Ryan, 42, had agreed to meet 18-year-old suspects Kobe Aust, Joseph Crane and Alexis Baumann, as well as a juvenile suspect who has not been named by police due to their age, on Sunday at his home in Columbia.

The teens told him they wanted to buy his iPhone 15 Pro, valued at about $585, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The group arrived at Ryan’s house around 8:10pm that night.

“I’m here,” the juvenile suspect allegedly texted Ryan after arriving with the others at his home on the 1400 block of Ridgemont Court.

Alexis confessed during police interviews to going to Ryan’s home in her vehicle. Joseph and the juvenile suspect went inside to retrieve the phone, according to the affidavit.

“Alexis advised she heard 3 gunshots from inside,” the affidavit says. “Juvenile suspect #1 and [Joseph] ran back out to her vehicle, and she drove away from the scene.”

Alexis told police that Joseph and the juvenile were both armed. Once back inside the car they admitted to shooting Ryan and stealing his phone.

They sold the phone at the ecoATM at the Conley Rd. Walmart directly after the murder, the affidavit says.

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