COLCHESTER – The death of a 35-year-old male in Colchester on Saturday, May 24 is connected to murder of Cheyenna Decker, 23, who was shot in her Colchester apartment on Jan. 21, according to McDonough County Sheriff Nick Petitgout.
Petitgout told the Community News Brief that Eric M. Warren-Spears, who lived on the second floor in the same Coal Street apartment complex as Decker, called McDonough Central Dispatch at 7:07 a.m., May 24 as he was threatening suicide and told the dispatcher he had a weapon. Upon arrival to the apartment two minutes later, sheriff's deputies found Spears deceased. The cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound, which was confirmed by McDonough County Coroner Eric Jameson.
According to Petitgout, Sheriff's Office deputies, along with detectives from the Illinois State Police and Macomb Police Department, had been working on the case since it occurred. In mid-April they identified a potential suspect following a series of search warrants obtained for social media platforms and website search engines. The resulting information found through the search warrants showed that the suspect had searched Decker and her apartment within 24 hours of her death. Plans were in motion to obtain a warrant to search Spears' apartment and vehicle on May 25, the day before he died, the sheriff noted. Spears, who originally hailed from Chicagoland region, lived at the 596 Coal St., Apt. D for approximately two years after residing in Macomb, Petitgout said.
'His second-floor apartment was a 'crows nest' - he could see the comings and goings of the entire apartment complex,' Petitgout shared. 'At this time, we believe this was nothing but an evil, cold-blooded murder.
'We do not believe, nor have any evidence, that they had a prior relationship,' he added. 'We anticipate sharing additional information as we continue to follow up on Spears' involvement and subsequent death. I'd like to thank my deputies, Illinois State Police and MPD detectives for their tireless efforts. This is what they've been focusing on since Jan. 21.'
Decker was killed in her Coal Street apartment sometime during the overnight/ early morning hours of Jan. 20-21. She was found in her first floor Coal Street apartment by her mother during the afternoon hours of Jan. 21, and an autopsy performed in Peoria Jan. 22 indicated she died as the result of a gunshot wound.
Sheriff's deputies have been investigating her death over the course of the last four months, following numerous tips and leads received since Jan. 21. Casey's, where Decker worked, along with her family and Crimestoppers, were offering a $10,000 reward for the tipster(s) who came forward with information that led to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator.
The sheriff met with the Decker family on Monday. Tionna Decker said while her family is relieved that another family won't go through what they have, there remains mixed feelings about Spears' death.
'The big thing is we don't know why. This isn't a complete closure for us because we'll never know why,' Tionna said. 'My mom and I both wanted to see this go to a trial and see the person responsible, to find out why and get answers.'
As Petitgout stated, there was no indication that Decker and Spears knew one another. Tionna said that friends who lived near the apartment complex said Spears was a 'loner' and that residents of the building would rarely see him. Tionna added that she and her mother actually noticed him months ago because he was always walking up and down the road, usually at night.
'We took notice of him because Cheyenna lived alone and walked to work, but really we didn't think anything about seeing him,' she said. 'I didn't expect it to be someone who lived right next door to her. I can't say I'm glad he's dead as I don't wish death upon anyone. While we don't have justice for Cheyenna, we know that God will decide if his death was justice for her. I don't think he should've taken the coward's way out. He should have faced punishment and he should have had to look us in the eye.
'But even Cheyenna would've said not to judge someone because you don't know what was going on in someone else's life,' Tionna concluded. 'Our family would like to thank everyone who came forward and spent so much time thinking of any little thing that could help; the people who contributed to the reward; who came to vigil and just took the time to care about her. We'll keep her life and legacy alive by continuing to talk about her, and to share the rubber ducks as part of the fundraiser in her honor.'
