Slain Illinois Deputy: Man Arrested In Multi-State Manhunt

WAYNE COUNTY, IL — A man is in custody Wednesday afternoon after a manhunt that crisscrossed from Illinois to Indiana and Missouri, then back to Illinois in the slaying of a Wayne County, Illinois sheriff's deputy. Police in Missouri said they believed the shooter was also connected to a violent carjacking at a gas station there hours later.

The Wayne County Sheriff's Office said Deputy Sean Riley, 38, was killed in the line of duty after he responded to a 5 a.m. motorist assist call on Interstate 64 near the Indiana border. He was found dead by another officer who arrived at the scene, and his squad car was missing.

Wayne County Sheriff Chris Otey said Riley's vehicle was later found abandoned on I-64 about five miles from where the deputy was shot, police said.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of our loved Deputy Sean Riley," Otey said in a statement Wednesday morning. During a press conference later in the day, Otey said local authorities have asked the Illinois State Police to investigate the killing.

On Wednesday afternoon, state police said a man was taken into custody and two hostages were unhurt after a standoff in Clinton County, Illinois, according to X95 WRXX Radio.

Police named the man in custody as 40-year-old Ray Tate of Kentucky. Tate was also wanted in a Knox County, Indiana carjacking earlier this month in which police said he shot at the vehicle's owner but missed.

Tate's arrest comes after the Clinton County Sheriff's Office shared photos of a vehicle believed to be driven by the wanted man and warned residents to lock their doors during the hostage standoff.

Tate was taken into custody in Carlyle, Illinois, KMOV reported.

Police said the suspect in Riley's death also may have been involved in a carjacking and shooting in St. Peters, Missouri that happened hours after Riley was killed. Illinois State Police told KMOV they believe Tate carjacked a semi-trailer near the spot where he left the squad car, and forced the driver to take him to a QuikTrip gas station in St. Peters, Missouri.

Police said the man, described as white and wearing a light gray hoodie, backpack and black shoes that are possibly Under Armour, carjacked a victim at the gas station. The victim, who was shot, was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

"It is believed this is a continuation of events which occurred in Illinois this morning," police in Missouri said.

The victim's Nissan Titan was later found abandoned in O'Fallon, Missouri.

Police told news outlets they believe Tate fled Missouri, then took two homeowners hostage in Carlyle, Illinois, where he was later apprehended when a SWAT unit was able to get inside the home.

During the manhunt, several agencies warned residents that Tate was considered "armed and dangerous" and advised anyone who spotted him to call 911.