Family keeps vigil for Belleville woman who disappeared 14 years ago
Fourteen years after Janet Tillman of Belleville went missing, her family still seeks answers and wants closure.
Janet Tillman was last seen Oct. 28, 2007, in East St. Louis just before her 50th birthday on Nov. 4, 2007.
Tillman, who had been living in the 9500 block of West Main Street in Belleville, was reported missing on Nov. 5, 2007, the day after her 50th birthday.
Family members were in town this week to celebrate a birthday and Tillman’s disappearance still weighs on them.
They rallied outside Belleville City Hall on Tuesday to raise awareness of Tillman’s case.
“As a sister our thing is to just keep her alive and let people know that she is still missing, because that is all we have,” said Vanessa Outlaw, who is Janet Tillman’s oldest sister.
“Because, we can’t move forward, she is missing, we need closure. If anybody knows anything, please let us know. She was very popular, she was real friendly, she didn’t meet no stranger, and she was just a nice person,” Outlaw said.
Belleville Police Capt. Mark Heffernan said on Tuesday there were no new developments to report on Tillman’s case.
‘I knew that something was wrong’
The family knew something was wrong on Nov. 4, 2007, when family members hadn’t heard from Tillman about her 50th birthday.
“One thing she would do, she would check in,” said Vanessa Outlaw. “She talked to everybody, then no one heard from her, then I knew that something was wrong.”
According to Belleville police in 2007, Tillman was last seen getting picked up by an individual in the area of Ninth Street and Exchange Avenue in East St. Louis. She was also known to frequent a truck stop in Troy.
Tillman has a record of prostitution convictions in St. Clair County, which family members have acknowledged.
According to her family, Tillman had a history of mental disabilities and was classified as fully disabled because she was unable to remember some things and had a strong inability to focus.
A reward of up to $10,000 is being offered for information regarding the whereabouts of Janet Tillman. Contact the Belleville Police Department at 618-234-1212 or the East St. Louis Police Department at 618-482-6600.
This story was originally published September 14, 2021 at 4:11 PM.