According to police, the man who was with a murderer during a shooting spree in Illinois earlier this year and killed eight people, including seven family members, is now facing charges.
Jon W. Hansen, 24, is charged with three counts of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and aggravated violence with a handgun, the Will County Sheriff’s Office announced Friday. According to deputies, Hansen admitted to being with the gunman, Romeo Nance, for at least one murder and another shooting during the January spree in Joliet, a Chicago suburb.
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Police responded to a gunshot at Pheasant Run Apartments, 5 Pheasant Run Road, Joliet Township, around 4:30 p.m. on January 21. When they arrived, they discovered a man, later identified as 28-year-old Toyosi Bakare, with a gunshot wound to the eye. Paramedics transported Bakare to the hospital, where physicians pronounced him dead. Investigators learned of another shooting in Joliet a short time ago, with the suspect driving a red Toyota.
When surveillance video of the Bakare shooting revealed a red Toyota entering and exiting the property, police believed they were dealing with the same culprit. A few hours later, detectives recognized the suspect vehicle as a red Toyota Camry with the Illinois registration plate Q73-0412, which Nance drove, they claimed. Shortly after noon, deputies went to the 2200 block of West Acres to contact the Camry’s registered owner but received no response. Deputies also knocked on the door across the street, which belonged to Nance’s relatives. They discovered blood and bullet wounds outside the door.
According to the sheriff’s office, officers entered the home and discovered two bodies. When officers entered the residence where the owner of the red Camry lived, they discovered five more individuals dead.
Around 6 p.m. on the same day, police received word that Nance was traveling along I-35 in the San Antonio, Texas, region, according to authorities. The United States Marshals Service and local police apprehended Nance at a gas station in Natalia, Texas, over 1,000 miles from Joliet. He got out of his automobile and hurried away. The Will County Sheriff’s Office said that he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Deputies confirmed that Bakare died with the same gun.
Investigators in Illinois then interviewed Hansen on January 27. He allegedly “made statements indicating he was with” Nance. According to authorities, Hansen admitted to being present when Nance shot and killed Bakare while also injuring another man in a separate incident. Deputies allegedly heard Hanson tell them that he threw the weapon Nance gave him in the non-fatal shooting into the DuPage River near his home.
Divers discovered the weapon while pulling a magnet along the riverbed on February 5, according to deputies. On Friday, police apprehended Hansen and took him to the Will County Adult Detention Center, where they are holding him without bond.
The shooting spree also claimed the lives of Nance’s family members. The Chicago Fox affiliate WFLD reports the following:
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- Tameka Nance, 47, mother
- Christine Esters, 38, aunt
- William Esters II, 35, uncle
- Joshua Nance, 31, brother
- Alexandria Nance, 20, sister
- 16-year-old, sister
- 14-year-old, sister
