URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — A man’s fate is now in the hands of a Champaign County jury after he was tried for the last three days on murder charges.

Court documents reveal that 26-year-old William Wesley is charged with four counts of first-degree murder for allegedly killing Marcus Catchings, aged 27, on July 3, 2023. Closing arguments were given by both sides on Friday, after which the jury began their deliberations.

As of the time of publishing, the jury has not reached a verdict.

The trial presented evidence that the shooting occurred as a result of a drug deal that went awry. Wesley took the stand in his own defense and acknowledged shooting Catchings but argued it was done in self-defense.

According to Wesley, the incident began when he purchased a quarter pound of marijuana, valued at nearly $500, from Catchings but failed to pay. Facebook messages showed they arranged to meet on July 3, 2023, for Wesley to settle his debt and trade a drug known as “lean”—a combination of codeine and promethazine—in exchange for more marijuana.

Wesley testified that he paid Catchings what he owed and that the two went to Catchings’ apartment at Springfield Avenue and Kenwood Road in Champaign. That’s where the state’s argument and Wesley’s version of events differ.

Wesley said that while he was looking down at his phone, Catchings came up to him and pointed a gun at him, demanding more money and the expensive chain Wesley was wearing. As a distraction, Wesley said he tossed some money and the chain.

When Catchings went to pick up these items, Wesley said he pulled out his own gun and fired. The bullet struck Catchings in the back of the neck, traveled through his head and out of his temple and through the apartment door.

Wesley said he felt he had no other option but to fire. He added that the round he fired was meant to be a warning shot, but he didn’t aim when he squeezed the trigger.

On the other hand, Assistant State’s Attorney Joel Fletcher said Catchings was texting his girlfriend within minutes of the shooting, and the texts did not imply an escalating fight.

Wesley said that after taking a moment to process what happened, he grabbed Catchings’ gun, fearing that he could still be alive and could fire at him again, then threw his and Catchings’ guns and other items into a duffel bag, and fled in Catchings’ car. He abandoned the car outside the home of his girlfriend, met up with a friend and traveled with him to Chicago, still carrying the duffel bag.

During the trial, the state had a neighbor of Catchings take the stand. The neighbor said he heard a gunshot and saw bullet damage to the door of Catchings’ apartment, but didn’t act on it until several hours later, when Catchings failed to make an appearance.

When the neighbor and his girlfriend called police, the first responding officer found Catchings near the apartment door, blocking it with his body; Wesley said he had no problem leaving and speculated Catchings may have still been alive at that point. But in the hours since, Catchings passed away and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The friend Wesley met after the shooting testified as a witness for the defense. He described Wesley as being panicked or in a rush, which was out of character for him, and said that he believed Wesley would have told him if he was planning a robbery. The two shared most things with each other, the friend said.

The friend added that he was unaware of any kind of dispute between Wesley and Catchings.

Wesley also testified that he was scared to call the police in the aftermath of the shooting because of how the situation looked and because he knew he would struggle to prove his version of the story.

Wesley’s family, who saw him in Chicago, also told police that they knew something was wrong.

Police eventually identified Wesley as a suspect in Catchings’ death and obtained a warrant for his arrest on July 18. The U.S. Marshals Service tracked him down to Atlanta, Georgia and arrested him on Aug. 25.

Wesley was extradited back to Champaign County, charged with four counts of murder and detained on a $2.5 million bond. When cash bail was eliminated in Illinois, Wesley motioned to be released from custody but was denied. He’s been in custody since his arrest.

Two years after the deadly shooting, Wesley finally went to trial. As of 4:30 p.m. on Friday, he is awaiting a verdict from the jury,