Funeral held in Joliet for family members killed in mass shooting

A funeral was held Saturday for the seven members of the Nance and Esters family who were slain in a mass shooting Jan. 21 in Joliet.

The ceremony was at Victory City Church in Joliet for Tameaka Nance, 47, Christine Esters, 38, William Esters II, 35, Joshua Nance, 31, Alexandria Nance, 20, Alonnah Nance, 16, and Angelique Nance, 14.

The family members were tragically killed in a mass shooting in two residences on Jan. 21 in the 2200 block of West Acres Road in Joliet.

Authorities said Romeo Nance, 23, son of Tameaka Nance, was a suspect in the shooting. Nance also was linked to the fatal shooting of Toyosi Bakare, 28, in Joliet Township, and the nonfatal shooting of a 42-year-old man in the city.

After the shootings, Romeo Nance was found in Texas, where he reportedly died by suicide after a brief confrontation with law enforcement, according to Joliet police officials.

Many family and friends at Saturday’s ceremony shared warm memories of the Nance and Esters family members who were killed, although a few were too stricken with grief to express words over the tragedy, according to a video of the ceremony.

A vigil was held for the family on Jan. 28 at West Acres Road. The vigil was attended by a couple hundred people. Latisha Fox, a vigil organizer, said the family were “amazing people.”

“They were loved, but they also were loving people. They gave you love and laughter,” Fox said.

Police are investigating the motive behind the shooting. They recently revealed the gun found on Romeo Nance in Texas was the same one used to commit the mass shooting.

Kyleigh Cleveland-Singleton, 21, Romeo Nance’s girlfriend and mother of his child, has been charged with obstructing justice in the investigation of the mass shooting. She’s set to appear in court Thursday for her arraignment.