More information has been made available about a man captured in the Illinois River on Monday morning after jumping from the Florence Bridge in an attempt to flee from police.
KHQA and Muddy River News report that 36-year old Brian Lee Kerr, Jr. was apprehended in the river by authorities at approximately 6AM Monday about 100 yards south of the bridge.
According to reports, Kerr is the primary suspect in a deadly carjacking that took place on December 28th in Oak Grove, Kentucky. Kerr reportedly shot 37-year-old Dmytro Serbeniuk from Des Plaines, Illinois multiple times during a carjacking and drove a stolen box truck to Humphreys County, Tennessee. WKRN-TV in Nashville, Tennessee reported that Kerr dumped the stolen vehicle in Oak Grove, Tennessee and stole another vehicle, believed to be a deer hunter’s truck. Kerr then crashed that truck in Maury County, Tennessee and then is said to have stolen a blue Lincoln passenger car, driving it to Clinton, Iowa.
Tennessee authorities reported Kerr was “believed to be armed with two handguns and an AR-15 rifle,” adding he had a prior conviction from 2004 for first-degree murder in the state as a juvenile.
While in Clinton, Iowa, Kerr is said to have stolen a beige Lexus SUV and drove that vehicle into Illinois while being pursued by police. Muddy River News reports that Adams County Deputy Sheriff Pat Frazier said he learned that Kerr was near Adams County at approximately 3 a.m. Monday. Frazier said Kerr was spotted on Illinois Route 336 north of Quincy at about 5 a.m., and Kerr immediately fled. Frazier said Kerr traveled south on Illinois Route 336 and U.S. 172 before taking the exit to Illinois Route 106 at Hull. Kerr then went through Kinderhook, Barry, Pittsfield and Detroit before arriving at the drawbridge at Florence while being pursued by officers from Adams County Sheriff’s Department, Pike County Sheriff’s Department, and Illinois State Police.
Once at the bridge, authorities say that Kerr drove the SUV into the draw bridge’s gates, totaling the vehicle on the gate, put it into the guard rail on the bridge, hopped out of the driver’s seat and jumped over the railing and into the Illinois River. Frazier said the temperature was 17 degrees at 5:30 a.m. when Kerr jumped into the river.
A passenger, Sarah Way of Nashville, Tennessee, was a passenger in Kerr’s vehicle and is said to have been Kerr’s girlfriend. She was on parole out of Kentucky, and she remained inside the vehicle after the vehicle crashed into the bridge. She was taken into custody by law enforcement officials at the scene without incident.
Officers launched a boat at the foot of the bridge to get Kerr who was floating on top of the water. Once in custody, Kerr was taken to Illini Community Hospital in Pittsfield for medical treatment. Kerr has not yet been booked into any jail, as he is expected to be extradited back to Kentucky on first-degree murder charges.
UPDATE Jan 7, 2025 3PM: Kerr has now been booked into the Pike County Jail.