PEORIA A suspect was arrested Thursday night in the murder of a Peoria woman whose body was found in East Peoria earlier that day.
Christopher J. Sanders, 42, of Peoria was apprehended in New Baden, according to Peoria Police Department spokeswoman Amy Dotson. The Clinton County community of some 3,200 residents is located east of St. Louis, about 170 miles south of Peoria.
Sanders was arrested on a charge of first-degree murder in the apparent slaying of Mona R. Ellison. The 50-year-old woman s body was discovered Thursday in woods near East Peoria Community High School.
Ellison had been reported missing Wednesday night.
During their investigation, Peoria detectives found information that implicated Sanders, Dotson said. Later Thursday, police had reason to believe Sanders fled to the St. Louis area.
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UPDATE 2:50 P.M.
PEORIA, Ill. Peoria Police have identified the human remains discovered Friday morning inside of a recreation vehicle in the 8300 block of N. Knoxville to be 49-year-old Jeffrey Blevins.
Autopsy results Saturday revealed Blevins suffered a single gunshot wound to his upper body and died instantly of significant internal bleeding.
Peoria Police have requested assistance from anyone within the tri-county area or elsewhere who have had contact with or dealt with Blevins Tree Service. If anyone has information, they are to contact Detective Scott Hulse at (309)494-8391.
The case remains under investigation by the Peoria Police Department.
A Peoria woman who had been reported missing to police was found dead Thursday in East Peoria.
Here s what we know about the deceased, the man charged in her death and details on the case.
Who is Mona Ellison?
Mona Ellison, 50, was a Galesburg native and a 1988 graduate of Galesburg High School.
She lived and owned a home in Peoria and previously worked as a waitress, bartender and certified nursing assistant, according to those who knew her. Her friends remembered her as kind and carefree.
“We’d ride motorcycles all the time,” Toni Morrison told the Journal Star. “She’d give you anything and the shirt off her back. She had a big heart.”
(Peoria County Jail)
The PPD’s Criminal Investigations Division has identified the suspect as 42-year-old Christopher Sanders.
During the course of an investigation, detectives developed information which led to Sanders becoming a suspect.
On Thursday, detectives had reason to believe Sanders left Peoria and was headed south, possibly to the greater St. Louis area. Local authorities were contacted and advised of the incident.
Sanders was taken into custody at approximately 6:30 p.m. Thursday in New Baden, Illinois.
PPD detectives transported Sanders back to the Peoria Police Department for interview purposes.
Sanders was subsequently arrested for first degree murder and transported to the Peoria County Jail.