Relative of man found dead inside East St. Louis home charged with first-degree murder
A relative of the man who was found shot dead inside of his East St. Louis home on Monday has been charged with first-degree murder.
In addition to the murder charge, Herman D. Taylor, 26, was charged with arson, residential arson, concealment of a homicide and felon in possession of a firearm, Illinois State Police Sgt. Elbert Jennings said.
On Monday, Ricardo “Ree” C. Jackson, 24, was found dead inside his residence.
A slew of police converged at Taylor’s home Monday after a call reporting a fire at the home in the 800 block of 80th Street came in to the East St. Louis Fire Department.
The fire department was able to extinguished the fire and police staged a huge presence in front of the home. Some of them worked in front of the home and some worked in the rear of the home. At one point an officer was seen taking a K-9 dog across the street as well.
As the news spread throughout the community, a large crowd came to the scene. The crowd was mixed with family, friends, neighbors and onlookers. Many of the people cried and hugged each other. Some were heard praying aloud.
When asked whether Jackson’s body was burned in the fire, Jennings said the victim was not in the room where the fire started.
Jackson’s mother was overtaken with anxiety at the scene. She said she didn’t know what was going on inside of the home and was fearful that something terrible had happened to her son. People in the crowd expressed feelings of shock and some wondered aloud what could have happened inside of the home.
Police did not say what led to the murder and did not say what the relation was between the two men.
St. Clair County Coroner Calvin Dye said Monday that the victim was shot multiple times.
Family members could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Taylor’s bail was set at $1 million. He is currently at the East St. Louis Police Department’s jail.
Reporter Hana Muslic contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 20, 2019 at 8:49 PM.
