Prosecutor: Caseyville businessman planned murder-for-hire for months, provided the gun
A Caseyville businessman first approached one of his employees about hiring a hitman to kill his estranged wife’s girlfriend months before the murder and provided the weapon that was used, a Madison County prosecutor alleged in a court hearing Wednesday based on police interviews with the men involved.
Sammy Shafer Jr. is accused of paying $10,000 to Marty Shaw, an employee from his business S. Shafer Excavating in Pontoon Beach, and Shaw’s cousin Gary Johnson to shoot Portia Rowland outside her Collinsville home on the morning of Jan. 21.
Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine charged Shafer, 36, of Caseyville, with first-degree murder and solicitation of murder.
Johnson, 45, of East St. Louis, is accused of shooting Rowland, and Shaw, 33, of Collinsville, is accused of driving the getaway car. They both face first-degree murder charges as well.
Shaw told investigators that Shafer first asked about killing Rowland in the summer of 2024, he would periodically ask about it after that and they met at a bar Shafer owns prior to the shooting to confirm the plan was still in place, Madison County Assistant State’s Attorney Lauren Maricle said during Wednesday’s hearing.
She also said Johnson told investigators that Shafer gave him the gun used in the shooting.
Shafer’s wife Sarah said they were going through a contentious divorce and that she had left him for Rowland, according to Maricle.
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At least two witnesses, including Sarah Shafer and a mutual friend to the Shafers and Rowland, told police that Sammy Shafer Jr. talked about being angry and wanting to beat Rowland up. The mutual friend said that Sammy Shafer Jr. would know Rowland’s work schedule because he stalked her and Sarah Shafer, according to Maricle.
Sarah Shafer also suspected that Sammy Shafer Jr. had been stalking her. She told police she found GPS tracking devices on her car and he would show up at places where she was when he would have no reason to know she was there.
Last year, Sarah Shafer alleged in a request for an emergency order of protection against Sammy Shafer Jr. that he had physically pinned her down, made unwanted sexual advances, took the keys to her vehicle, removed a fuse from the vehicle so it wouldn’t start and smashed her cellphone.
Maricle argued at Wednesday’s hearing that Shafer should remain in jail until his trial because he poses a threat to people in the community, including witnesses in the case.
“Anyone who upsets this defendant on a personal level, any person his estranged wife has a romantic interest in or romantic relationship with would be at risk of harm,” Maricle said.
Madison County Associate Judge Emily Nielsen agreed with her and ordered Shafer to be detained.
Shafer’s attorney, Scott Rosenblum, had argued that Shafer should be released from jail with conditions like house arrest or electronic monitoring because he has no criminal record, is a well-known local businessman and lifelong resident of Caseyville with three young sons he’s close to.
Rosenblum also noted that the state’s evidence largely rests on Shaw, who Rosenblum said has “credibility issues.” Shaw named Shafer, but initially he named a different individual and then changed course, according to Rosenblum. The defense attorney told reporters at a previous hearing that Shafer planned to plead not guilty and challenge the evidence.
Maricle said in response that Shaw’s statements were corroborated by Johnson, video surveillance and cellphone records.
Nielsen said she found it most alarming and concerning that the planning for the crime is alleged to have started back in the summer.
“So this was a situation that, even though you were going through a hard time, it appears that you had time to think about that decision and that you stayed with that decision over a period of months,” Nielsen told Sammy Shafer Jr. in the court hearing.
Both Shaw and Johnson waived their right to detention hearings and remain in custody at the Madison County Jail.
The day of the fatal shooting in Collinsville
Collinsville police responded to a call reporting shots fired at 6:06 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 21, at Rowland’s home in the 1300 block of Olive Street. The 911 caller was a neighbor who said she heard gunshots and a woman screaming, Maricle said.
Rowland was found dead in her driveway with multiple gunshot wounds. Her car was running, so authorities believe she may have been warming it up before work.
About 30 investigators from the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis helped with the investigation.
They had few leads at first, but license plate readers ultimately led them to their three suspects.
Video surveillance footage obtained by investigators from residences and businesses showed a person fleeing on foot and a vehicle in the area, a 2016 GMC Terrain SUV.
The car went into the area of Rowland’s home about 30 minutes before the shooting, according to Maricle. License plate readers also captured the car and investigators learned it was registered to Shaw’s mother and last seen in Spanish Lake, Missouri.
Investigators located the car parked at an apartment complex in Spanish Lake and observed Shaw take items out of the car before arresting him.
Shaw, and later Johnson, told police the following happened the day of the murder, according to Maricle’s presentation to the judge Wednesday:
Shaw dropped Johnson off near Rowland’s home on the morning of Jan. 21. Johnson hid near the home, waited for Rowland to come outside, shot her four times and when she fell to the ground, he fled to an area he knew Shaw would be parked waiting to pick him up.
They went back to Johnson’s house, where Johnson changed his clothes and left the gun. They both went to a casino and then met up with Shafer at Shafer’s business.
Shafer told them to go to his house and get $10,000 he left inside a single glove in an excavator on the property as payment for the murder.
Shaw kept $3,500 for his part and gave Johnson the rest.
Johnson told investigators they attempted to shoot Rowland a day earlier on Jan. 20, but she didn’t appear to go to work that day.
Rowland, 32, graduated from Collinsville High School in 2010. She enjoyed working with her hands as a mechanic for the Metropolitan Sewer District in St. Louis and playing flag football, volleyball and billiards, according to her obituary.
This story was originally published February 5, 2025 at 4:55 PM.
