Shot fired during altercation on MetroLink train in East St. Louis

Investigators with the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department are looking for a man who fired a single shot on a MetroLink train in East St. Louis on Thursday night.

St. Clair County Sheriff’s Sgt. James Hendricks said authorities received an 8:58 p.m. report of a shot being fired during an altercation between two people on board the commuter train. The altercation appeared to have started between the two East St. Louis stations.

No one was struck by a bullet, but a man sustained a head wound during the altercation. He was taken to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries. His identity was not released. He was from Illinois, Hendricks said.

It is unclear whether the two people in the altercation knew each other.

After speaking with two witnesses who were on board the train and at the station at Fifth and Missouri, “we were able to determine that two individuals were on an eastbound train who had just come to Illinois from Missouri who were involved in a verbal disturbance on board the train,” Hendricks said.

He said the verbal disturbance turned into a physical altercation, with one man hitting the other on the head with a gun. “During that battery the firearm went off and a bullet was discharged. It did not strike any body,” Hendricks said.

Many of the people on board the train were returning from a Cardinals game.

Anyone with information is asked to call the non-emergency number at the sheriff’s department at 618-825-2051.

To speak directly to the investigators, contact Investigator Andrew Leach at his 618-825-5712 or Investigator Gary Brewer 618-825-5779.

This story was originally published April 14, 2023 at 1:17 PM.