Southern Illinois Man Sentenced For 2017 First-Degree Murder

BELLEVILLE, Ill. (AP) — A southern Illinois man has received a 25-year sentence for the 2017 murder of a man who stopped to talk to the convicted killer and three other men.

Keundray Kilpatrick of Centreville pleaded guilty in January in the death of 60-year-old Johnny Lovett. The victim was found dead in his truck on Nov. 24, 2017 by Centreville police after several 911 calls about a body burning in a vehicle.

After the discovery of Lovett's body, police said the victim stopped his vehicle to talk to a group of four young men, at least one of which he knew. Authorities say investigators weren't sure why Lovett stopped, but robbery motivated the shooting.

After the 21-year-old Kilpatrick allegedly shot Lovett several times, Lovett's truck rolled into the woods and caught fire after striking a tree.

Kilpatrick must serve 100 percent of the sentence handed down Monday.