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Clown-costumed stabbing
A 15-year-old boy was charged with first-degree murder after a 78-year-old man, John W. Allen, was found stabbed to death near a bus stop in the St Louis area, with police describing the attack as random.
“A 15-year-old boy has been charged with first-degree murder”
Illinois State Police said investigators reviewed video footage showing the suspect wearing a clown costume around the time of the killing, and officers arrested the teenager at a residence in East St Louis after identifying him as a suspect.
NBC News reported that Allen was likely making one of his regular, unannounced visits to his older sister when he crossed paths with the knife-wielding teenager in a clown costume near the bus stop he would frequent.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene, and relatives said Allen lived in Jennings, Missouri, and had family connections in the area before the attack.
The case is ongoing, with prosecutors seeking to move it out of juvenile court so the teenager can be tried as an adult.
Family and court push
Allen’s family told NBC News the intersection where he was found is near a bus stop Allen would use for surprise visits with his sister Delores Fowler, and Fowler said, "He'd never make an appointment. He'd just call me and say, 'Are you at home?'"
Fowler, 82, said she worried about Allen traveling on public transit alone, and she told NBC News, "We want him tried as an adult," adding, "He took a person’s life for no reason."
The Associated Press reported that the teenager appeared in juvenile court Thursday and would be detained until at least his next hearing, with Chris Allen, a spokesperson for the St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s Office, saying the prosecutor’s office sought to move the case out of juvenile court.
AP also said video of the 15-year-old suspect showed him dressed in a clown costume, and Illinois State Police said state officers quickly identified a suspect and later arrested the teenager at a residence.
The St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s Office said it wants to prosecute the teen as an adult, while the public defender’s office represented him in court.
Video, weapon, and next steps
Multiple outlets tied the case to surveillance video, with the Times of India saying investigators said video footage shows the suspect wearing a clown costume around the time of the killing and authorities reviewing where the footage came from.
“"I’m thinking he’s going to kill everybody in the house the way he came,"”
CNN reported that a Ring camera recorded the suspect outside a home three blocks away less than an hour before Allen’s body was discovered, and CNN affiliate KSDK reported neighbors describing someone moving between homes, peering through windows and carrying a large knife.
CNN also quoted Lee Palmer telling KSDK, "I’m thinking he’s going to kill everybody in the house the way he came," as police reviewed purported footage and collected additional surveillance video.
The Global News account said Illinois State Police special agents arrested the 15-year-old for first-degree murder after the stabbing attack left a victim dead, and it quoted police describing the response to 76th Street and State Street shortly after 10 p.m. on August 3, 2026.
As the investigation continues, Illinois State Police said video footage of the suspect dressed in a clown costume has been circulating and that it is working to collect all relevant video.
