Persons Of Interest Arrested In Murder Of Illinois Mayor

[bijou]

Victim: John Thornton


Authorities are interviewing two people in connection with the murder of a St. Louis-area mayor.
   Washington Park police say Mayor John Thornton was fatally shot Thursday morning after he stopped to help someone.
   Detective Kim McAfee says Thornton would occasionally do "patrols" to make sure officers were keeping the community safe. ...
http://mystateline.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=150085

Background:

The mayor of a decaying US village famous for its strip clubs and debt problems has been shot dead in his car.

A crime scene investigator combs the wreckage of Washington Park mayor John Thornton's car

A crime scene investigator combs the wreckage of John Thornton's car

John Thornton was shot twice at point-blank range as he sat in his car in Washington Park, near St Louis.

Police believe the 52-year-old mayor had been driving around after finishing a night shift at his second job when the gunman struck.

The car careered off the road and ploughed into a tree.



Local reports in Illinois claim the killer was in the car with Mr Thornton and escaped to a waiting getaway vehicle.

A census in 2000 showed half the village's 5,300 population lives below the poverty line on an average income of £13,000.

With assets of less than £33,000 and debts of more than £650,000, it has filed for bankruptcy.

A number of thefts from its coffers have hit the village hard.

A former employee of Mr Thornton was jailed and ordered to repay almost £242,305 in September, while another was locked up after stealing around £94,300 last March.

A third has served a jail sentence after pilfering more than £111,330 to cover personal expenses. ...

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[longview]

Wow.  The town sounds like a mess.

My sympathies to his family and friends, though.

[The Village Idiot]

Sounds like this Mayor was the hardest working person in the whole dang town too, I can bet there will be nobody willing to work 2 jobs and still do "patrols" to make sure city employees are doing teir jobs. I wonder if the shooter was a city employee who was caught not doing their job?

[Alpha Mare]

I grew up there. It's part of E. St. Louis, the place that makes Detroit look good.

[littlelamb]

So sad for his family