FREEPORT — Two Freeport men, both 23, are in custody after three people were murdered and one was injured over the weekend.
Chad Blaser stabbed his ex-girlfriend, 21-year-old Gabriel “Gabby” Ann Nicole Petsche of Monroe, at the scene of a single-vehicle crash at the intersection of West Avenue and Pleasant Street in Freeport at about 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 1, according to the Freeport Police Department.
Petsche, who has a child with Blaser, was found unresponsive on the ground near a vehicle that struck a snow pile. She had stab wounds to her back, abdomen and head and later died of her injuries at an area hospital.
Police located Blaser about a block and a half away. He was arrested and jailed on a first-degree murder charge.
At the time of stabbing, Blaser was out on a $2,000 signature bond in a felony domestic violence case involving Petsche in Green County. He was arrested and jailed three weeks earlier in Monroe after police say he damaged a vehicle outside her home. The damage was severe enough to warrant a felony charge.
The day before Petsche was stabbed, Blaser failed to show up for a court hearing on the case.
Petsche’s stabbing may be related to another fatal incident less than 48 hours later about five miles north of Freeport in Cedarville.
Devin Marcum was jailed on a $600,000 bond for two first-degree murder charges and one attempted murder charge following a shooting at The Cedar Inn, according to Stephenson County Chief Deputy Mark Marti.
Deputies responded to a report of shots fired at the bar at 1:47 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 3.
The shooting took the lives of two men. Kyle Tucker, 35, Freeport, was pronounced dead at the scene. Shaun Bradbury, 36, Freeport, was taken to Freeport Memorial Hospital and then transferred to Rockford Memorial Hospital, where he died.
Michael Steinhauser, 35, Freeport, was shot but survived. He was taken to Freeport Memorial Hospital.
At a press conference Monday morning, Marti declined to speak on the possible connection between Petsche’s stabbing and the Cedarville shooting, or Marcum’s motive, citing an ongoing investigation. He did say Marcum knew the three shooting victims.
Marcum was arrested in Freeport shortly after the shooting. He was found with a handgun that matched the caliber of shell casings located at the scene in Cedarville, Marti said.
Like Blaser, Marcum was out on bond at the time of the shooting. Stephenson County court records indicate Marcum was released from jail Jan. 24 after posting a $100 cash bond for a misdemeanor charge of aggravated assault with use of a dangerous weapon.