Rockford woman charged with murder in fatal stabbing granted pretrial release

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — A Rockford woman charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death of a 37-year-old man earlier this week has been granted pretrial release.

Twenty-year-old Varianna Parsons was released from the Winnebago County Jail Wednesday night, after a detention hearing in front of Judge Heidi Augustsson.

According to court records, while on pretrial release, Parsons is not to have any contact with her co-defendant, 24-year-old Shawn Bunton Jr., and various other people.

Bunton and Parsons are both charged with first-degree murder and obstruction of justice.

Charges against the pair came after a witness called 911 in the early hours of Oct. 7 and said she heard what she described as “a hollow pipe hitting something.” The witness told police she also heard a male and a female yelling, indicating that the sounds were coming from underneath the Whitman Street Bridge, near the 700 block of Madison Street.

A criminal complaint states officers with the Rockford Police Department located 37-year-old Kyle Stephens lying at the beginning of the bike path, just north of the bridge. Police say Stephens was suffering from several lacerations, including one on the left side of his neck. Stephens died a Rockford hospital.

Police say Parsons and Bunton were in possession of a knife they obtained from a friend’s car. Witnesses who were with them say Parsons and Bunton got into a argument with Stephens who was banging a bat or a pipe against the bridge while ordering them to leave the area because they were “being loud.”

Authorities allege that Bunton pursued Stephens and eventually pinned him against a wall and was making thrusting motions toward him during the ensuing physical altercation. Stephens then tumbled down an embankment.

Stephens started to run away and was followed by Parsons and Bunton, according to a witness.

“[The witness] thinks that what ever they did to him after Kyle ran off is what caused Kyle to die,” police wrote in their report. “She said Varianna threw the bat/pipe into the river or field and Shawn threw the knife in the river.”

One of the witnesses told officers that people she was with—referring to Parsons and Bunton—”just killed a guy” and stole her wallet, car keys and phone.

Parsons is due back in court on Nov. 13. Her case has been assigned to Judge Debra Schafer. Bunton is still at large as of this report.