Second Belleville native alleges East St. Louis police officer beat him during arrest

Another Belleville native filed a complaint against an East St. Louis police officer in connection with a March 14 incident.

The complaint, filed in April, was written by Lamont Kollore on behalf of his son, Khari Kollore, alleging he was beaten by the officer. Kollore is the second person to file a beating complaint over the incident.

According to the latest complaint, Khari Kollore, 21, alleges that both he and his friend, Jaylen Lacey of Fairview Heights, formerly of Belleville, were beaten by the same police officer in East St. Louis on March 14— information that wasn’t previously reported. Prior accounts of the beating only mentioned Lacey being beaten.

“After disabling my vehicle and being placed in handcuffs and placed in the back of the police vehicle, (an officer) struck me several times in my face, while stating that ‘You know you got to get these ones,’” Kollore said in the new complaint.

City officials did not return phone calls for comment regarding the Kollore complaint.

The city said last month it closed its investigation about the March 14 incident, but would not release details about it until the state police finishes their probe. When asked questions about the investigation, Illinois State Police referred a BND reporter to the FBI’s Springfield office.

“The FBI is aware of the incident, but per policy does not confirm or deny the existence of an investigation,” Rebecca Cramblit, public affairs specialist for FBI Springfield, said last month.

The FBI would not comment further about the investigation.

Lamont Kollore said his son recently told him that he also had been beaten. Kollore, a counselor, said he doesn’t know why his son didn’t initially disclose that information, but he said that his son being traumatized could’ve contributed to it.

“It came out later on,” Kollore, 58, said about that detail of the incident. “There’s trauma there, and trauma affects everybody differently….Your emotions and your adrenaline is running, then, as you calm down, there’s more clarity that comes at that point, but in that very moment , when the adrenaline is running and you’ve just been assaulted, the average person wants to fight back.”

Lamont Kollore said his son declined to be interviewed by the BND until he conferred with his lawyer whom Lamont said is Madelyn Daley, a criminal defense attorney in Belleville.

Daley could not be immediately reached for comment on the case.

Kollore said his son didn’t suffer any bruises but did witness his friend, Lacey, being brutally beaten by the officer.

“He repeatedly punch(ed) the passenger in his face, until he was unconscious and bleeding profusely before dragging him from my vehicle slamming him to the ground and handcuffing him,” Kollore’s complaint states. “In addition…. he caused substantial damage to my vehicle in excess of $5,000.”

Lacey told the BND last month he needed stitches due to his injuries. He filed his complaint against the East St. Louis Police Department on March 18.

On March 17, East St. Louis Police Chief Kendall Perry and City Manager Carlos Mayfield announced that the police department was investigating allegations that at least one of two officers used excessive force during a March 14 arrest.

As of Thursday, the city had not returned requests regarding the names of the officers, details about their current employment status within the department or any other information regarding the investigation.

Lamont and Lacey’s mom, Patricia Lacey, said that they’re aware of the FBI investigation but declined to comment on whether they’ve been involved.

March 14, 2022

Here’s a detailed account of what happened on March 14, based on both complaints and interviews with the BND:

Jaylen Lacey said he was sitting in the passenger seat of a white Jeep Cherokee SRT with friends on Monday, March 14. He said the car was parked outside of Pop’s, an East St. Louis liquor store, where he and witnesses said they were meeting with other friends. Lacey said that around 2:30 p.m., an unmarked Dodge Charger parked on the driver’s side of the Jeep. He said neither he nor anyone else in the Jeep knew it was the police because the car didn’t have any lights and the officer didn’t identify himself.

Feeling concerned, the driver of the Jeep started to leave the parking lot of Pop’s, according to Lacey’s complaint. Then, another unmarked Dodge Charger struck the passenger side of the Jeep, pushing it into oncoming traffic and hitting its rear tire, according to complaints filed by both Lacey and Kollore. The Jeep was able to come to a complete stop after the collision with the unmarked car then made a right turn on 88th Street, Lacey wrote in his complaint.

The unmarked car drove into the other lane of the street when Lacey and Kollore noticed a marked police car, so they decided to pull over, according to Lacey’s complaint. That’s when the officer in the marked police car approached the driver’s side of the Jeep and pulled Khari out of the vehicle, Lacey wrote in his complaint. Kollore said in his complaint that after being placed in the police car, the officer in the unmarked vehicle hit him repeatedly.

In his complaint, Lacey said that the same officer went to the passenger’s side of the Jeep with a gun pointed at Lacey through the front glass. Lacey said he had his hands up when the officer opened his door. Lacey said the officer began to punch him repeatedly with his right fist and eventually laid on top of him while elbowing him in the head. He said the officer wasn’t wearing a police uniform nor a badge.

“I could see blood dripping from my head falling into the seat of the console,” Lacey wrote in his complaint.”

Lacey said he didn’t learn of why he and his friend were being arrested until he was in a cop car that took them to the East St. Louis Police Department’s holding cell. He said they were told they were drag racing in the area, a claim that he and witnesses deny. Lacey and Khari were taken to East St. Louis’ holding cell.

‘I want him to lose his job’

Lacey said in an interview that his requests for medical attention were ignored. Lacey said he was feeling nauseous and dizzy because of his injuries that went untreated until his mom pleaded with officers to take him to the hospital. He was eventually taken to Touchette Regional Hospital in Cahokia Heights and later returned to the holding cell.

Lamont Kollore said his son was also taken to the hospital with Lacey, although he didn’t suffer any injuries. He said Khari was released from the holding cell on March 16. Lacey was released on March 15.

Kollore said East St. Louis Police Chief Kendall Perry has been “completely open” about the case and has had meetings with the families involved. Still, he wants the officer who allegedly beat his son and his son’s friend to be held accountable.

“I’m really hoping this brings greater attention to building and developing greater relationships with the community and with the police,” Lamont said. “I’m hoping that this unfortunate situation in some way can bring voices to individuals that probably, most likely, have been victims of this officer. I want the officer to be dealt with accordingly. I want him to lose his job. I hope he never carries a badge or any position of authority, anywhere throughout the entire country. He did this to himself, and what he did is unacceptable.”

This story was originally published April 28, 2022 at 2:48 PM.

DeAsia Paige

Belleville News-Democrat

DeAsia Paige joined the Belleville News-Democrat as a Report for America corps member in 2020. She’s a community reporter covering East St. Louis and surrounding areas. DeAsia previously interned with VICE and The Detroit Free Press. She graduated from The University of Kansas in 2020.