ST. CHARLES COUNTY — A Florissant man wanted on murder charges in Alabama is back in police custody after being a fugitive for years.
Gerald Hogue, 64, is one of three Missouri men connected to the 2021 shooting death of a man in Marion, Alabama. The other men have been identified as Lawrence Johnson and Christopher Roberts, both of ӣƵ.
Each of the men were charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit murder and five counts of attempted murder after they fired guns at one of Hogue’s family members.
“They came to Marion, it appears for a particular reason. That’s to do bodily harm to some people,” Perry County District Attorney Michael Jackson told an Alabama television station in 2021. Jackson could not be reached for comment.
According to St. Charles County officials, Hogue was taken into custody in June for a parole violation on unrelated charges. When officers were identifying him they found the outstanding warrant issued after he had failed to appear in Alabama for a previous court hearing.
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Officials with both ӣƵ and St. Charles counties said they don’t know when Alabama issued its warrant and for how long he had been living in the local area.
Hogue’s family, including his brother-in-law Joseph Bernard, said he had been living with them on a quiet cul-de-sac just blocks away from the Eagle Springs Golf Course in northern ӣƵ County for years.
“We knew he had been arrested, but we didn’t know for what,” said Hogue’s brother-in-law, Joseph Bernard.
“He called us from jail and told us that he was in trouble, but he didn’t say why,” Bernard said. “He’s been in trouble with the law before. Sometimes we know and sometimes we wouldn’t.”
Bernard said Hogue listed the Florissant home as his address for court, but rarely stayed there.
“His mail comes here, and he comes here every so often,” Bernard said.
Neighbors on the cul-de-sac said they remember seeing Hogue in the neighborhood and were surprised to learn that he was wanted in connection to a murder. They describe him as being friendly and outgoing, and said he helped a neighbor clean up a fallen tree.
Since his arrest in June, Hogue has remained in custody of the St. Charles County Jail. He has been charged with being a fugitive from out-of-state and is contesting his extradition to Alabama, according to court records.
A hearing has been scheduled for July 31 in the St. Charles County case.
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