East St. Louis mom died of gunshot wounds to head and chest, coroner says

The young mother who was on the phone with police dispatchers as her killer broke into her apartment early Tuesday morning died of gunshot wounds to her head and chest, according to St. Clair County Coroner Calvin Dye Sr.

Lt. Kristopher Tharp, commander of the Greater St. Louis Major Case Squad, said leads were being pursued Wednesday in the case of 23-year-old Alexis S. Winston, who died with her baby daughter nearby.

Winston was upstairs in her apartment at the John Robinson Homes public housing complex when she heard an intruder break the glass in a rear window. She called 911 at 4:04 a.m. Tuesday and was on the phone with the dispatcher as the intruder came in, East St. Louis Police Chief Michael Hubbard said. Officers arrived four minutes later and found her dead. The window was missing its security guard.

Winston had not lived in the John Robinson Homes long and kept to herself, neighbors said.

Tharp said investigators were again canvassing the neighborhood Wednesday and asked for the public’s help in finding Winston’s killer.

Anyone with any information is urged to call the Major Case Squad at 618-274-5434, East St. Louis police at 618-482-6767 or CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.

This story was originally published August 9, 2017 at 11:15 AM with the headline "East St. Louis mom died of gunshot wounds to head and chest, coroner says."