Man accused of murdering his brothers arrested in St. Louis

HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. — Officers with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department on Friday arrested an Illinois man wanted on two counts of murder, police said.

Jeffery Austwick, 54, was taken into custody on Wednesday for the suspected murder of his two brothers, Marc Austwick and John Austwick.

Initially, Highland Park Fire Department and Police responded to a residential building fire in the 1700 block of Park Avenue in Highland Park, Illinois – about 20 miles north of Chicago.

When they arrived, they discovered Marc and John’s wounds and labeled them suspicious. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene. The fire was extinguished and no other victims were found on the property.

Investigators with the Highland Park Police Department and the Lake County Major Crime Task Force said they have evidence that Jeffery shot his brothers, previously owned by the three siblings’ mother, and then set the house on fire. The investigation also revealed that Jeffery fled the scene in a car. The victims were found outside the home.

The warrant states that investigators issued a federal arrest warrant for Jeffery late Wednesday night for the murders.

At around 5:30 a.m. Friday morning, SLMPD officers responded to a crime scene near the Gateway Arch site in downtown St. Louis after receiving a call from the National Park Service that Jeffrey had been spotted.

The Real-Time Crime Center helped officers locate Jeffery by using cameras that monitored his movements and led them to Jeffery’s location, an SLMPD spokesman said. He was arrested without incident after being found in some bushes on Walnut Street near 7th Street.

Jeffery remains in custody in St. Louis awaiting a court hearing, police said.

The investigation into the fire and death is ongoing. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.