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Kansas City Man Charged with Aiding Escape of Cass County Inmates, Drug Traffickers

A Kansas City man has been charged with helping two convicted drug traffickers escape from Cass County Jail Monday evening. Steven Lydell Williams, Sr., 64, was arrested and charged with a single count of aiding or assisting in the escape of Sergio Perez Martinez, 43, of Panorama City, California, and Trevor S. Sparks, 33, of Kansas City. Perez Martinez and Sparks were charged in a two-count criminal complaint with escape from confinement and aiding or assisting in escape from confinement. The two remain at large, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Documents filed in federal court Wednesday indicated that Sparks and Perez Martinez had been seen leaving Cass County Jail at 10:22 p.m. after “forcibly” escaping Monday and heading east. A covert escape, rendezvous at Casey’s Sparks, called “Nephew” by Williams, made several phone calls to Williams, whom Sparks called “Pops,” starting at 8:00 p.m. that evening and ending at 9:45 p.m., according to prosecutors. As detailed in the affidavit, Sparks first called from jail and told Williams to come to the Casey’s General Store on West Mechanic Street in Harrisonville, Missouri. Sparks asked how long it would take for Williams’ cousin to call back. Williams replied that he would “get it for him.” Around 8:10 p.m., Williams said he was ready to pick up the money, and Sparks said he would call back in 30 minutes to give directions. Just after 9 p.m., Sparks told Williams to park near the diesel pumps at Casey’s around 10 p.m. Sparks said some white individuals in a black truck would be there before 10:15 p.m. and told him not to leave until then.

The final phone call was reported at 9:45 p.m., when Williams told Sparks that he had arrived. Sparks said he thought the individuals would be there by now, but they were on the way. Sparks told Williams, “They are just going to give it to you,” and advised him not to leave, even if he didn’t call back. Aided by security footage, law enforcement connected the white Mercedes SUV Williams drove to the vehicle parked at Casey’s that evening. It was seen pulling out of the parking lot just after 10:30 p.m. At midnight, Sparks and Perez Martinez were seen on surveillance video entering the St. James Apartments on the 6100 block of Citadel Drive, where Williams allegedly resides. The trio exited the complex after 12:30 a.m., according to court documents. Further details of how Sparks and Perez Martinez may have escaped the jail have not been released. While Williams was seen returning to the apartment, Perez Martinez and Sparks were not seen in the surveillance camera footage again. Police believe Sparks previously provided meth to Williams, and that Williams was known to Sparks’ drug organization. Burning bodies in rural Missouri, selling meth to an informant Both Perez Martinez and Sparks are accused of drug conspiracy in the Kansas City area. Prosecutors believe Sparks ran a multi-million dollar meth ring that has since been connected to two murders.

On Nov. 7, Sparks was convicted of conspiracy to distribute meth, conspiracy to commit money laundering and two felony weapons charges. His $4.1 million enterprise distributed 420 kilos of meth to the Kansas City, Springfield, St. Louis and St. Joseph areas between January 2017 and December 2018, according to federal prosecutors. Documents filed in the Western District of Missouri allege that James Hampton and Brittanie Broyles were slain in August 2018 after members of Sparks’ group drove to St. Louis to find a drug courier suspected of stealing $30,000 worth of meth and a vehicle. After not being able to find the suspected thief, Sparks blamed Hampton, according to court documents. Hampton was allegedly taken to a house in St. Louis, tied to a chair, and beaten with brass knuckles and pots. He was then transported to Kansas City in the trunk of a vehicle. On Aug. 6, 2018, Hampton’s remains were found burning in his Dodge Challenger in rural Lafayette County. Two days later, Broyles was found dead, shot twice in the head in northeast Kansas City. Prosecutors allege she was killed after seeing Hampton’s murder. Documents filed in federal court Thursday allege Williams allowed Sparks to use his garage on the 300 block of Quincy Avenue in Kansas City to store the body.

In March 2020, Williams was questioned by police about the garage, and he said he had no knowledge of what Sparks used the garage for. Sparks was previously being held without bond, awaiting sentencing, before his escape.

In July, Perez Martinez pleaded guilty to distributing more than 500 grams of meth and money laundering after he sold drugs to a police informant several times. According to an affidavit, Perez Martinez supplied an individual with 8-10 pounds of meth a week to an individual in Missouri, transporting the narcotics by trailer or mail. Perez Martinez allegedly had associates in Kansas City who distributed the drugs on his behalf.

Williams appeared in court Wednesday afternoon and remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing next week. Sheriff’s deputies are working with the U.S. Marshals Service to locate Sparks and Perez Martinez, according to Lt. Jess Claibourn, a spokesperson for the Cass County Sheriff’s Office. A $5,000 reward is being offered for the arrest of each man. T