Shorewood man charged in connection with Joliet murder spree

Gabriel Castillo
·2 min read
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Shorewood man charged in connection with Joliet murder spree

JOLIET, Ill. — Deputies in Will County have arrested a man in connection with a string of shootings that left eight people dead and one injured over two days in Joliet and Will County in January.

Following the murder spree, the subsequent manhunt eventually came to an end in Texas when the alleged suspect, Romeo Nance, took his own life.

Search underway after 'multiple' found dead in 2 homes in Joliet: police
Search underway after 'multiple' found dead in 2 homes in Joliet: police

Nance is believed to have been responsible for fatally shooting seven people inside two homes in the 2200 block of West Acres Road in Joliet, and then fatally shooting one man and injuring another in two seemingly random shootings in Will County.

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On Friday, Will County deputies announced that 24-year-old Jon Hansen, a Shorewood resident, was taken into custody and charged with three counts of murder, one count of attempted first-degree murder, and one count of aggravated battery with a firearm.

Authorities said during an interview on Jan. 27, Hansen allegedly told detectives with the Will County Sheriff’s Office that he was with Romeo Nance during the two seemingly random shootings that unfolded on Jan. 21 in Will County, and added that the gun used to shoot one of the victims was the given to him by Nance after the shooting.

Jon Hansen, 24, has been charged in connection with a string of shootings that left eight people dead and one injured over two days in Joliet and Will County in January.
Jon Hansen, 24, has been charged in connection with a string of shootings that left eight people dead and one injured over two days in Joliet and Will County in January.

Deputies also allege Hansen told authorities that he later threw the gun — That was given to him by Nance — Into the DuPage River near his home.

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Nine days after Hansen was interviewed by Will County Deputies, a Plainfield Fire Department diver dragged a magnet along the bottom of the DuPage riverbed on Monday, Feb. 5, and found the gun authorities allege Hansen threw into the river.

On Friday, an arrest warrant was issued for Hansen and deputies said he was taken into custody without incident.

Hansen is currently being held at the Will County Adult Detention Facility while he awaits his initial court appearance.

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