A Michigan man has been accused of killing his roommate earlier this year after a verbal argument over a Taco Bell meal allegedly turned physical.
Mark Newsome, 54, was charged with second-degree murder in the fatal Jan. 31 beating of his roommate in Roseville, the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Officesaid on Tuesday, June 18.
The victim was identified as 72-year-old Dale Mitchell.
The Macomb Daily and Detroit TV station WJBK reported that the alleged argument began over a Taco Bell food order.
According to prosecutors, Newsome was bound over to Macomb County Circuit Court by Roseville District Court Judge Joseph Boedeker on Tuesday.
He is being held without bond in the Macomb County jail, the prosecutor’s office said.
Newsome’s attorney did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment on the case.
“We are committed to ensuring that justice is served for the victim and his family,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido said in a statement.
Newsome and Mitchell were residents at a boarding house on Waldorf Street at the time of the alleged altercation, according to local media reports.
The prosecutor’s office claims that Newsome punched Mitchell in the head several times, before Mitchell died of his injuries. A third and fourth roommate spoke to WJBK in February about Mitchell’s death.
“Oh God it scared the hell out of me, it really did,” roommate Bob McQuade said. Their roommate Larry Melton added, “There was blood all over upstairs.”
McQuade continued: “To think a fight over food would escalate into murder. It’s inconceivable.”
Both Melton and McQuade told the news outlet they were sleeping when the alleged fight between Newsome and Mitchell started.
“‘Why are you doing this?'” Melton said. “‘Why are you doing this? Leave me alone. Quit, please quit.’ that’s what I heard.”
McQuade called the situation “senseless.”
“I trusted Mark as my friend. I could never believe he would’ve done something like that,” he said.
At the time, Lucido said, “If we’ve come to grips with life about fighting and killing somebody over a taco or food itself, there’s gotta be more to life than that.”
“It would have been a lot easier to walk away.”
Per the Macomb Daily, Mitchell is remembered by loved ones as a “kind, gentle soul.” He was reportedly becoming increasingly fragile as his health deteriorated.
Newsome is scheduled for a July 2 arraignment. Court records do not indicate that he has entered a plea.
