A year has passed since Belleville’s gas station murder. Where does the case stand?
Finding the man who murdered a 51-year-old gas station employee more than a year ago in Belleville has proved more challenging than his family, customers and employer had hoped.
Doug Cimperman was working the night shift on Jan. 16, 2021, when he was shot and killed outside the Zephyr Xpress (ZX) on Carlyle Avenue as part of an attempted robbery. Surveillance video documented what happened in a largely empty parking lot and convenience store.
The case remains a high priority for Belleville Police Department, according to Capt. Mark Heffernan, lead investigator.
“We’re still hopeful that a suspect can be identified,” he said this week. “... We’ve followed hundreds of leads, both locally and outside of the state. But we do not have anything at this time that points to a particular suspect.”
A family spokesperson, who asked not to be identified due to the fact that the killer remains at large, said they hadn’t heard from police about any developments in the investigation.
The spokesperson declined further comment.
John McCarey, who heard multiple gunshots at the ZX from his nearby home on the night of the murder, said this week that residents of the mostly quiet neighborhood haven’t forgotten about it.
McCarey doubts that an arrest will be made now that so much time has passed. He noted that the gunman was wearing a mask and hoodie and no vehicle was shown in the grainy surveillance video.
“What normally happens in a case like this is the perpetrator will tell somebody, either bragging or getting it off their conscience or something, and that’s how the word gets out,” McCarey said. “Evidently, this guy hasn’t told anybody.”
Soon after the Cimperman murder, CrimeStoppers offered a $15,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. That included its standard $5,000 for a homicide and an additional $10,000 from Midwest Petroleum, a St. Louis-based company that operates the ZX at 420 Carlyle Ave.
On Jan. 21, 2021, Midwest Petroleum launched a GoFundMe campaign to increase the reward. The company raised $625 of its $5,000 goal before ending the campaign, according to the website.
Kristina Anderson, the company’s spokeswoman and human resources director, didn’t return calls for comment this week.
“Doug was a kind and gentle man that cared for his teammates, loved birdwatching, and was considerate to everyone he met,” the GoFundMe description read while the campaign was active.
“We at Midwest Petroleum Company are deeply saddened that he was taken from all those who knew and loved him in such a terrible way.”
Another person who took an interest in the Cimperman case was Phil Elmore, Belleville alderman for Ward 7, which includes the ZX. He wasn’t acquainted with Cimperman personally but heard that he was well-known and well-liked among customers.
Elmore described the murder as a “traumatic event” for people in the neighborhood and beyond.
“I don’t think it’s gone away from people’s memories,” he said this week. “The way things are going in this society at times, we all have to be cognizant of walking around any community, not just Belleville, late at night and be aware of our surroundings.”
Elmore said he has faith that Belleville police have done a thorough job interviewing witnesses, following leads and gathering evidence. Like McCarey, he noted that the gunman, as shown in the surveillance video, was mostly hidden by his clothing and mask.
Elmore said Midwest Petroleum seems to have made at least one change to increase safety at the gas station, which is next door to Elite Retreat Day Spa & Salon and across McClintock Avenue from Zion Lutheran Church and School.
“I’m pretty sure that they’ve added lighting in their parking lot,” he said. “If that’s true, it’s an improvement I’m happy to see. It seems very bright at night. I noticed that quite a while ago.”
Belleville police received several calls about shots being fired at the ZX gas station just after 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021.
They arrived to find Cimperman lying in the parking lot with multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene, despite officers performing CPR and EMT personnel attempting other life-saving measures.
Nearly 20 investigators with the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis worked on the case for five days before turning it back over to Belleville police.
Some area residents knew Cimperman from ZX or the local Shop ‘n Save, where he worked before it became a Schnucks supermarket. Others went to school with him at Belleville East High School in the 1980s.
On Jan. 20, 2021, the Major Case Squad released the surveillance video, which showed a masked man rushing toward Cimperman, forcing him against a gas pump and later going into the convenience store and searching behind the counter with a gun in his hand.
The suspect was described as a black male, wearing a light-colored hooded sweatshirt and black pants. He apparently fled on foot after the shooting.
Anyone with information on the Cimperman murder is encouraged to call Belleville Police Department at 618-234-1212 or St. Louis Regional CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.
This story was originally published February 17, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
