Funeral director announces arrangements for murdered Edwardsville attorney
Funeral arrangements have been announced for Randy Gori, 47, the prominent Edwardsville attorney and philanthropist who was murdered Saturday in his home.
A public visitation will take place from 2 to 8 p.m. Monday at St. Boniface Catholic Church in Edwardsville, according to Joe Kalmer, owner of Kalmer Memorial Services in Lebanon.
“St. Boniface was added onto in 2002,” said Kalmer, of Edwardsville, who is a church member. “It’s probably the largest church in Edwardsville, and we certainly needed a venue that’s large enough to accommodate the large crowd we expect.”
Gori’s funeral Mass and burial will be private, Kalmer said. A full obituary is pending.
Madison County Sheriff’s Department found Gori dead about 9 p.m. Saturday at his home at 4586 Mooney Creek Road, northeast of town, off Illinois 157 toward Hamel. A black 2020 Rolls-Royce SUV Cullinan was missing.
Officials called in the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis to investigate. On Monday, the Madison County state’s attorney’s office announced that Timothy Banowetz, 28, of Wentzville, Missouri, had been charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder, armed robbery, vehicle theft and unlawful restraint.
According to the charging documents, Banowetz bound the hands of Gori and two minors before using a knife to stab Gori to death, then he stole cash and two cellphones before fleeing in the Rolls-Royce.
Gori was a founding attorney at The Gori Law Firm, which was best known for handling lawsuits related to asbestos exposure. It has offices in Edwardsville, Alton, St. Louis, New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Orlando, Florida.
Gori also is remembered as a philanthropist who donated millions of dollars to charitable causes; a sports fan who loved St. Louis Blues hockey and St. Louis Cardinals baseball; and a father of two children, Grace and Ethan Gori, who survive.
Randy Gori also had a passion for collecting vehicles, especially Ferraris. Gori owned 20 Ferraris and served as vice president of a local chapter of the Ferrari Club of America, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
This story was originally published January 7, 2020 at 2:45 PM.
