Man sentenced to 31 years in MetroLink shootings

An East St. Louis man will serve 31 years in prison for robbing and shooting a man at the Swansea MetroLink station in November 2016.

Deangelo Franklin, 23, was sentenced Monday. In 2016, he walked up to a 33-year-old man waiting on the MetroLink platform, stole his wallet and cell phone, then shot him in the face with .38-caliber revolver, according to court records.

A 911 call after the shooting indicated that the man got on the MetroLink and sat down, getting blood everywhere, court documents say. The caller said the man was awake, but she didn’t know how lucid he was. He had a gash on his head, next to his eye.

Franklin was arrested shortly after the shooting, after St. Clair County Sgt. Kenny McHughes saw a man with a bandana over his face, running across the parking lot. McHughes told him to stop, but he refused. Franklin was taken into custody after a short chase.

He was also sentenced to time for the armed robbery and shooting of another man at the East Riverfront MetroLink station.

He was initially charged with two counts of aggravated battery with a firearm and two counts of aggravated robbery with a firearm. Both robbery charges were dismissed as a part of a plea deal.

Shaquille R. Turner, 23, was also charged in the shooting. His case was still pending as of Tuesday.

This story was originally published September 27, 2017 at 11:37 AM with the headline "Man sentenced to 31 years in MetroLink shootings."