Weapon still sought in St. John's slaying

The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary is still looking for the gun used in the Portugal Cove Road killing this weekend in St. John's.

Philip Wayne Pynn, 25, remains in custody on a second-degree murder charge  in Saturday's death of his friend Nick Winsor, 20, who was shot during what appears to have been a botched armed robbery at a St. John's home.

Police have not recovered the weapon used to shoot Winsor. Sources tell CBC News it was a shotgun.

Police are also searching for a third suspect believed to have been at the Portugal Cove Road home where Pynn and Winsor had arrived for what sources called an armed robbery attempt. Winsor was shot outdoors.

Const. Suzanne FitzGerald said the police are still scouring for more clues to piece together the sequence of events outside the home and immediately afterwards.

"We're also encouraging anyone who may have been present at the scene to contact the RNC major crime unit immediately," she said.

Pynn appeared in court again this morning via videoconference. He faced charges of destroying property at Her Majesty's Penitentiary in May and an alleged assault at the provincial court holding cells in June.

A funeral for Winsor is scheduled for Friday morning in St. John's.

'Gonna be a hell of a summer'

The shooting has exposed a slice of the underworld in St. John's, as both Pynn and Winsor — despite their young ages — had criminal records.

Winsor had previously been given an 18-month sentence for theft and assault with a weapon. 

Just last month, he was found not guilty of having prohibited weapons. In court, Pynn testified that the weapons were his.

For his part, Winsor was not shy about his life in pictures and comments he posted to his Facebook page.

"im back....... its gonna be a hell of a summer..." Winsor wrote a week before he was shot to death, and after he had been released from jail.

Heavily tattooed, Winsor in two photos poses with others with what appear to be knives and homemade weapons, with suggestions that the photos were taken in jail.

On June 29, he posted, "backout on the street....released in a limmo.... word, i anintr gotb uddies. i got brothers... lifes goodx..... :)"

In April, commenting on a photo that depicted him and a friend, Winsor wrote, "wish i could go back and start from there again now... be twice as paid with half the jail time done..... haha."