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Off-Duty Madison County Officer Charged With Three Counts of Aggravated Battery

By Devese Ursery

An off-duty Madison police officer was charged with three counts of aggravated battery by discharge of a firearm in connection with the shooting in downtown Belleville, early Sunday morning.

Khalind D. Hayes, 27, of Fairview Heights, is accused of shooting three people during an altercation, according to criminal complaints filed Monday by the St. Clair County state’s attorney’s office.

Hayes has been a full-time police officer for the Madison Police Department for almost 18 months, according to Jeff Bridick, Madison police chief.

“I was made aware of the incident by the Belleville Police Department shortly after its occurrence,” said Chief Bridick.

Hayes was placed on unpaid administrative leave, pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings, according to an emailed response from Chief Bridick.

Belleville police responded to reports of a person shot in the first block of North Charles Street at about 1:56 a.m. While en route to the incident an officer was flagged down by the driver of a red sedan coming towards him. The vehicle was carrying two of the three victims of the shooting incident. An adult male victim was located when officers arrived on the scene, according to a press release from Belleville police.

During the preliminary investigation, witnesses and victims stated a verbal dispute occurred between Hayes and the male victim at a local business earlier that night. As the business closed due to an unrelated incident, Hayes stayed in the vicinity with two male friends and three females. The dispute turned physical between the men as the male victim and his two female friends confronted Hayes. When the fight ended, the suspect displayed a handgun and allegedly three people with a 9 millimeter handgun. The male victim, Stephen Evans was shot in the buttocks, one female victim, Morgan King suffered a graze-type wound to her leg and the second female victim suffered a graze-type wound to her abdomen.

Belleville Police Detectives and Crime Scene Unit personnel responded to investigate, and the victims were transported to local hospitals where they were treated for their injuries and later released.

The suspect called wanting to turn himself into police custody a short time after the initial call to police dispatch. Hayes was taken into custody at police headquarters without incident, per the release.

On Friday, August 5, in the St. Clair County Courthouse, at 1p.m., Hayes was charged with three counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, a class X felony. His bond was set at $250,000, which he posted and was released, according to court records.

Police are not looking for any other suspects in this case.

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