Police make arrest in metro-east shooting that left 1 man dead, 1 child injured
Update 12/22/25: The spelling of the name of the person charged in connection with a Cahokia Heights shooting has been corrected in this article after authorities updated court records.
An East St. Louis man was charged on Friday in connection with a Cahokia Heights apartment complex shooting that left one man dead and injured a juvenile on Wednesday.
Quliac Halfacre, 41, was arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a repeat felony offender; unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon; and aggravated battery, according to Cahokia Heights Police Chief Thomas L. Trice and St. Clair County court records.
Demario Johnson, 36, of 241 Miller Court in the Greystone apartment complex was identified as the homicide victim on Wednesday, St. Clair County Coroner Calvin Dye Sr. said. Johnson was pronounced deceased at 9:59 a.m. in the emergency room of Touchette Regional Hospital in Cahokia Heights.
Dye said the shooting occurred at Johnson’s address.
Trice said in an interview Friday the juvenile suffered “non-life threatening” injuries and is in “good shape.”
“This investigation is still ongoing and additional people could be charged in the very near future,” Trice said in a news release Friday.
Trice did not release details about what prompted the double shooting, which occurred at 9:33 a.m. Wednesday.
Previous shootings have been investigated at the Greystone complex this year, including one that was a homicide.
In June, 19-year-old Quan Vaughn was fatally shot at the apartment complex located off Missouri Avenue, and in July, a 12-year-old child was shot at the complex. Two men were charged in connection with Vaughn’s death.
The Belleville News-Democrat in August published an article about tenants’ complaints about leaks, mold, crime and inadequate heating and air conditioning equipment at the Greystone Apartments.
Johnson’s death was the eighth homicide in Cahokia Heights this year, according to reports in the Belleville News-Democrat. Two persons were killed last weekend in the 3900 block of Walnut Street and a suspect in that case was ordered on Friday by a judge to be detained until his trial.
This story was originally published December 19, 2025 at 7:47 PM.
