CENTREVILLE -- The mood was somber in Centreville early Tuesday morning as news spread that a well-liked Centreville Police lieutenant had been gunned down in the line of duty.
Lt. Greg Jonas, 59, of Centreville, appeared to have been shot once in the back of the head, St. Clair County Coroner Rick Stone said. The shooting occurred before 2 a.m. at the Ernest Smith Apartments at 47th Street and Piggott Avenue in Centreville.
Residents said Jonas was lying in the street and his maroon Impala police cruiser was parked in front of 4724 Tudor Ave. in the public housing complex. More than 100 police officers, including from Centreville, Alorton, Belleville, East St. Louis, Cahokia and the St. Clair County Sheriff's Department, responded to the call.
Jonas had been patrolling the complex and "approached some subjects and was out of his car," said John Lakin, commander of the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis and a major with the Madison County Sheriff's Department. "Some sort of altercation occurred, and Lt. Jonas was shot one time."
The Major Case Squad was activated by 4:30 a.m. Crime scene technicians dusted the front of Jonas' police car, and residents said he may have stopped some suspects, who had placed their hands on the front of the car.
"We've got 23-30 Major Case Squad investigators working the case," Lakin said. "And we're getting additional assistance from Illinois State Police and the U.S. Marshal Service and the St. Clair County Drug Tactical Unit."
Officers met briefly on the sidewalk about 5 a.m. and fanned out in groups. They searched the neighborhood, including next to a vacant apartment building at 4718 Tudor Ave., where residents said people often run and hide.
Police may have a suspect and were showing a picture of a young male with braided hair. There is a security camera outside the complex's office, and the office manager took officers in to where the surveillance recordings are kept.
Several individuals were taken from the crime scene in police cars. Asked whether police have any suspects, Lakin said: "Anybody seen being placed in a police car would've been considered a suspect or someone with information."
Anyone with any information about the slaying is urged to call the Major Case Squad at 346-3394.
"We asked that the case be moved to the top of their priority list, and they have graciously done that," Lakin said. "We understand other cases out there are important but people understand when a police officer loses his life, that case is a priority."
Lakin said the Major Case Squad is "committed to solving this case as quickly as possible."
"We need to try to get closure for the family and the citizens of Centreville," he said.
Residents gathered at the scene, shock and disbelief evident on their faces. Some shed tears. They described Jonas as a regular at the housing complex and said he could be counted on.
Jonas knew everybody in the neighborhood, residents said, and he was the last person anyone would have expected to be so brutally gunned down. Many insisted the shooter could not be a resident because no one in the housing complex would have done such a thing.
"Jonas was a real nice police officer and worked as a police officer for over 30 years," said Travia Arnold, who lives near the apartment complex. "He would get out and talk to everybody."
A vigil honoring Jonas has been scheduled for 3 p.m. Sunday at the site of the crime at 47th Street and Piggott Avenue.
Washington Park Detective Kim McAfee, through his security company KLM Loss Prevention, is offering a $2,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect or suspects.
"As a police officer having sat there looking at him take his last breath, it really got to me," McAfee said. "We need to get whoever did it off the streets as quickly as possible."
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