Crime & Courts

Joliet man pleads guilty in connection with Crest Hill shooting, fatal crash cases

Prosecutors said man fired off gun, possessed defaced firearm

A Joliet man pleaded guilty in two criminal cases, one in connection with a Crest Hill shooting that injured two last year and another related to a fatal crash that killed a man in 2019.

On July 20, Jeremiah Grubbs, 21, pleaded guilty to aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in connection with the Oct. 14 shooting in Crest Hill and possessing a defaced firearm that was left inside of an SUV involved in the May 26, 2019, crash that left 60-year-old Suos Khloth dead.

In the Oct. 14 incident, Grubbs was involved in a verbal altercation outside of an apartment complex and he “discharged a handgun and fired the handgun at the direction of an apartment building where other people were present,” prosecutors said.

Judge Carmen Goodman sentenced him to serve at least 50% of a three-year prison sentence and credited him with serving 230 days in jail.

Grubbs was involved in the shooting in the 1800 block of Arbor Lane that left two people wounded with injuries considered not life threatening, Crest Hill police said.

Dohndray Woods, 23, of Joliet also was arrested in connection with the same incident.

Woods still faces charges of attempted first degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm in connection with the shooting. His next court date is Sept. 1.

In the May 26, 2019, incident, prosecutors said Grubbs “fled the driver’s side of an SUV from a DUI detail. Police found a defaced gun in the abandoned SUV, loaded with 11 rounds. [Defendant] informally stated that the gun was his.”

Goodman sentenced Grubbs to serve at least 50% of a 2-year sentence and credited him with 431 days already served in jail.

Anthony Casterberry, 24, of Joliet, was charged as the driver of the SUV that crashed into the car driven by Khloth. Before the crash, the vehicle was involved in a high-speed chase with officers, Crest Hill police said.

Casterberry still faces numerous charges in connection with the incident, including reckless homicide and failure to report an accident involving personal injury or death. He was scheduled for a trial setting date Aug. 12.

Casterberry’s attorney, Jeff Tomczak, has alleged in court filings that DNA evidence excluded his client as the SUV driver and that Grubbs reportedly wrote a letter stating Casterberry was not the driver.

Som Khloth, the son of Suos Khloth, has an ongoing wrongful death lawsuit case against the City of Crest Hill and Crest Hill Police Officer John McHale.

The lawsuit claimed McHale’s high-speed pursuit of a driver who committed several traffic violations May 26, 2019, led to the crash that killed Suos Khloth and caused passenger Ratanak Kong to suffer a fractured collarbone.

Felix Sarver

Felix Sarver

Felix Sarver covers crime and courts for The Herald-News