Suspects, both of Racine, arrested at nearby restaurant
By Jason Arndt
Editor
A home invasion in the Town of Wheatland turned deadly Thursday, when two suspects broke through a front door, and opened fire at the four residents inside.
One of the four residents returned fire, which left the two suspected assailants wounded, according to Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth.
The man who returned fire, Joseph Riley, 23, however, was struck first and suffered fatal injuries.
A woman was also wounded in the shooting and remains hospitalized in serious condition at Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Suspects Markeith Wilson, 20, and Demarco Hudson, 18, were later arrested and booked into Kenosha County Jail on pending first-degree intentional homicide charges.
Initial reports indicate Hudson was 17 years old, but according to online jail records, he is listed as an 18-year-old.
Beth, at a Friday morning press conference, told reporters the shooting happened in the 31500 block of 71st Street.
Beth said the two suspects allegedly arrived at the home and kicked open the front door and started opening fire at around 10 p.m.
Riley was pronounced dead at the scene and emergency personnel transported the female victim to Aurora Medical Center in Burlington. She was then taken to Froedtert Hospital.
“The two suspects, it sounds like, got into a dark four-door sedan, left eastbound to the McDonald’s area in Paddock Lake,” said Beth, adding authorities are still searching for the vehicle, which was driven by someone else.
“They were in the car, I believe they were driven by possibly two other people, and they got out of the car, one of the two people that were driving the car said ‘Get out’ or they voluntarily got out.”
According to preliminary reports, a clerk inside the combination McDonald’s and BP gas station called authorities, stating the two suspects came into the building and said they were struck by gunfire.
The suspects were then taken to separate hospitals for treatment and released to authorities.
“They both have been released and both are in custody,” Beth said. “We are still looking for the black, or dark, four-door sedan and we are going through film in the different locations out there trying to locate and come up with who the vehicle belongs to.”
Although drugs may have been involved, according to Beth, detectives are still working on gathering additional information.
Authorities informed area schools of the situation, telling administrators the problem was not a random act and did not believe anyone in the community was in danger.
“We are very confident that all of the parties that posed a threat to anybody were in custody and this was a targeted situation. This wasn’t a random act,” Beth said. “They knew where they were going, they knew what their objective was and the general public was never at risk. We had everybody. We had it all contained within minutes of each other.”
Challenging life
Following Riley’s death, a friend set up an online fundraising page to help offset funeral expenses, stating he faced early struggles in life.
“Joey had a heart of gold and would do anything out of love,” the GoFundMe page states. “That is because he was bounced from foster care, and group facilities never having a place to really call home.”