Murder For Hire In Will Co: Former Bus Driver Guilty Of 7 Crimes

JOLIET, IL —A former Crest Hill bus driver was found guilty of solicitation of murder and solicitation of murder for hire last week by a Will County jury. According to the Will County State's Attorney's Office of Jim Glasgow, the jury spent about 90 minutes deliberating whether Christian Shepherd, now 43, was guilty or innocent of his charges.

The man from Ottawa was found guilty of seven different criminal acts. Prosecutors said that Shepherd was previously a school bus driver and that he was in custody on criminal sexual assault charges when he hired a hit man to kill the victim, the victim’s mother and two Crest Hill police officers.

Shepherd is eligible for a sentence of 20 to 40 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections when his sentencing occurs.

According to online court records related to Shepherd's case:

Shepherd was charged with aggravated criminal sexual assault in May 2010, when he was 30 years old. On May 4 and May 11, 2010, Shepherd was in custody at the Will County jail, he had two consultations by video with defense attorney Anthony Tomkiewicz about Tomkiewicz possibly representing him in the sexual assault case.

Around the same time period, Shepherd was allegedly discussing plans with a fellow inmate, Franklin Bryant, to have Bryant kill some or all of the witnesses in the sexual assault case.

Bryant was in jail at the time for a felony unlawful possession of a weapon charge and Shepherd gave Bryant a map to the residence of one of the intended victims and a written statement that Bryant was supposed to read while standing over the intended victims at the time of the killings.

For carrying out the killings, Bryant was to receive at least $900, court records show.

"Unbeknownst to defendant, however, Bryant turned the documents over to police officers at the jail and told the officers what defendant was planning. Bryant agreed to wear a wire so that the police officers could get defendant on tape discussing and planning the murders. A detective who was working on the case contacted Assistant State's Attorney Michael Knick for his assistance in the matter," the files from an appellate ruling reflect.

According to the case files, Bryant was released from the jail on furlough and when he returned, he was fitted with a wire. After going back to the jail, Bryant obtained incriminating statements regarding Shepherd's plan to have Bryant kill the witnesses in his sexual assault case.

Will County Jail records show Shepherd has been living in the Will County Jail for the past 12-and-a-half years. He was booked into custody on April 30, 2010, with a $1.5 million bail.

His next court hearing is set for Nov. 18 in Courtroom 405.