Man fatally shot in Ohio, Ill. identified; suspect charged with murder, home invasion

Matthew J. Pairadee of Ohio, Illinois, who was arrested after an eight-hour standoff with police early Monday, was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder in the Sunday afternoon shooting of a 69-year-old man.

Pairadee, 31, held on $10 million bond in the Bureau County Jail, also is charged with armed home invasion.

Bureau County State’s Attorney Thomas Briddick said in court Tuesday emergency dispatchers received a 911 call shortly after 6 p.m. Sunday saying Pairadee entered a home by force in the 300 block of West Railroad Street in Ohio and took a 10-month-old child from the home.

Ohio, which has a population of about 465 people, is located on Route 26 about 13 miles north of Princeton.

After Pairadee left the home, gunshots were heard and a witness told police a man was lying in the road near the intersection of West Railroad and Elm streets as Pairadee left the area.

Sheriff’s deputies arrived and discovered the body of Jerome Lauer, 69, and his truck nearby in park with the driver’s door open, leading investigators to believe Lauer pulled over his truck to speak to Pairadee.

Near Lauer’s body, deputies found two 9mm shell casings. Lauer had been shot in the stomach and the forehead, deputies said.

Traveling on foot, Pairadee took the baby to his home at 206 E. Long St., leaving it with a family member, then left the home a vehicle, authorities said. Briddick said the baby’s mother left work and took the baby from the home. Pairadee was later seen by sheriff’s deputies driving a vehicle into a garage at the home.

The police departments set up a perimeter shortly after 7 p.m. as efforts to get Pairadee to leave the home began through the means of telephone and loudspeaker. Police said he had barricaded himself into the basement of the house.

After being unable to get Pairadee to surrender, police obtained a search warrant after midnight Monday and gas canisters were dispensed, ending the hourslong standoff.

During Pairadee’s interrogation by the Bureau County Sheriff’s Office, Pairadee said he took the baby before he pulled out the gun and shot Lauer in the stomach and then the forehead, Briddick said.

The firearm was later found under the stairs of the home under the instruction of Pairadee, Briddick said.

Pairadee already was facing legal troubles before Sunday. He was out on bond for a misdemeanor charge of aggravated assault, with an Oct. 28 court date for those charges.

Briddick said the home Pairadee forcefully entered also was under a no-trespass order stemming from prior incidents.

No official representative has been appointed to Pairadee’s defense at this time. Pairadee was represented by the Bureau County Public Defender’s Office during Tuesday’s hearing.

Public Defender Eric May, who was present Tuesday, filed a motion for a mental fitness evaluation to determine is Pairadee is fit to defend himself.

The prosecution agreed to the motion and an evaluation will be performed.

The base sentence for murder is 20 to 60 years. With a sentencing provision including the use of a firearm, the sentence can be increased to a minimum of 45 years.

Home invasion carries a minimum sentence of six years and a maximum of 30 years. This count can also include a sentencing provision including the use of a firearm, bringing the minimum sentence to 21 years.

Pairadee’s charges also could carry a sentence of natural life based on protected classes of victims and other factors that would need to be proven in court.

Pairadee’s case will be presented to the Bureau County grand jury Nov. 18 and his next appearance in court will be Nov. 28 for an arraignment or a pretrial hearing.