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News
Police mum on murders : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisPolice mum on murders
| Investigation into shooting deaths of Oswego mother and three children continuing
| by Tony Scott
| 6/21/2007
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The Oswego community is still reeling after learning of the deaths of a local mother and her three children last week, and State Police investigators are not saying much about what happened.
Funeral services are planned for this Saturday in Missouri for Kimberly Vaughn, 34, her daughters Abigayle, 12, and Cassandra, 11, and son Blake, 8. All four were found in their red 2004 Ford Expedition with fatal gunshot wounds early last Thursday morning. The vehicle was parked on an access road to a cellular tower near Interstate 55 in Channahon.
Kimberly's husband, Christopher Vaughn, 32, survived the incident with only a gunshot wound to the leg and flagged down a passerby who called 911, police said.
Dozens of newspaper and TV reporters crowded a conference room at the Illinois State Police District 5 headquarters in Lockport, Ill., last Thursday afternoon to learn about what happened that morning.
Will County Coroner Pat O'Neil and State Police Capt. Carl Dobrich, flanked by a display featuring photos of Kimberly Vaughn and the children, gave basic information about what occurred last week but would not divulge details, citing the ongoing investigation.
O’Neil told reporters that Kimberly Vaughn was shot once and that the children were shot multiple times.
Dobrich said Christopher Vaughn is not in custody and is talking to the state police "voluntarily." Vaughn was questioned three times over the weekend by state police, but Dobrich said he was not a suspect or a person of interest in the crime and that the police would not keep Vaughn under surveillance.
“I don’t know if I’d call him a person of interest either,” he said. “That’s a strong word.”
The State Police recovered a handgun at the scene, Dobrich said.
Dobrich would not say if Christopher Vaughn is a suspect in the deaths. However, he said the police are not looking for other possible suspects "at this time."
"That investigation is still being conducted," Dobrich said.
Asked if Christopher was blaming Kimberly for the deaths, Dobrich responded that "Nobody's blaming anybody,” and asked if Kimberly was murdered, he said he would not elaborate on that.
Dobrich confirmed that Christopher Vaughn was not at the vehicle when the passerby found him, but that police believe that the incident unfolded at the scene.
“We believe that everybody involved in that incident was there,” Dobrich said.
The passerby was interviewed on Thursday morning, was “very cooperative” and was released.
The family, Dobrich said, left Oswego early Thursday morning and “the information we've determined, right now, is that they were going on a social trip.”
Christopher Vaughn was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Joliet for treatment of his injuries.
Various media reports have stated that Christopher Vaughn has told police that Kimberly Vaughn shot her children and herself, however, State Police Trooper Mark T. Dorencz, a spokesman for the agency, said this week that he wasn’t sure “where that came from.”
Dorencz said the investigation is still ongoing. Representatives from the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s office and the Oswego Police Department have confirmed that the agencies are not involved in the State Police’s investigation.
Moved from Washington
The couple moved to Oswego one year ago from Washington state. According to State of Washington records, the couple purchased a house in June 2001 in Sammamish, Wash.; they had previously lived in Missouri.
Both Christopher and Kimberly Vaughn were named on public incorporation records for his business, StoneBridge Investigations, which is described on its web site as “a full licensed private investigation agency focusing on corporate computer fraud and cybercrime investigations.”
The business was also registered under the names StoneBridge Private Investigations, StoneBridge Security Consulting Services and StoneBridge Security, Inc. The business was incorporated in Washington in December 2003 and its business license expired in December 2006.
The business’s address was listed as Bellevue, Wash. State Police investigators said last week that Vaughn also worked in Chicago in “the computer field.”
Christopher Vaughn also works as a consultant for Chicago-based Navigant Consulting. Company spokesman Andrew J. Bosman said Tuesday that Vaughn has been employed by the company for "a little less than two years."
Navigant Consulting's web site lists its main office in Chicago, but also lists offices throughout the United States as well as Canada, the United Kingdom and China.
The firm's web site describes Navigant Consulting as "a specialized independent consulting firm providing litigation, financial, healthcare, energy and operational consulting services to government agencies, legal counsel and large companies facing the challenges of uncertainty, risk, distress and significant change."
Counseling sessions offered
Cassandra Ellen “Sandi” Vaughn and her brother, Blake Vaughn, attended Old Post Elementary School and the oldest child, Abigayle Elizabeth “Abbi” Vaughn, attended Thompson Junior High School.
Last Friday, Oswego School District officials held a meeting for interested parents and to offer counseling services at Old Post Elementary School. About 10 families attended the session, and were also referred to other counseling services in the community if they felt the need to use them, officials said. A similar session was held at Thompson Junior High School.
"There are no words to describe the depth of our feelings and the loss we have suffered," said Dr. David Behlow, superintendent of schools for the Oswego School District.
Behlow commented on the tragic first half of 2007 that has affected the district’s students, including the Feb. 11 traffic accident that killed five Oswego High School students.
"Good things have happened in our district this year, but to paraphrase 'A Tale of Two Cities,' this has been the best of times and the worst of times,” he said. “This has just been a horrible thing. It's difficult to try to explain the unexplainable."
Parents and others wishing more information, can contact the school district's administration center at 630-636-3080.
Funeral services Saturday
Funeral services are being planned by the Baue Funeral and Memorial Center in St. Charles, Mo. Details, including the time and location of the services as well as complete obituaries, can be found in the Countywide section of this newspaper.
Biographical information supplied by the funeral home states that Kimberly Vaughn, a recent graduate of Phoenix University, was involved with her children’s scouting organizations and was active in her church and her children’s schools. The information also states she was a member of the Oswego School District’s Character Counts Committee.
Abbi, the oldest daughter, was a gifted artist and enjoyed playing soccer, recently joining a soccer league as a goalie, the biography states. She was on the track team and the drama club at Thompson Junior High School.
She enjoyed reading stories, “often writing and illustrating her own stories,” the biography says.
The middle child, Cassandra, called “Sandi” by those who knew her, was “a leader of friends and cousins, often organizing backyard games and basement plays performed for relatives,” her biography states. “She was called ‘Commander Sander’ by her family.”
An animal lover, Sandi had two pet tree frogs. She was looking forward to attending Thompson Junior High School and playing clarinet in the school band, the information from the funeral home states.
The youngest child, Blake, was “an avid reader” who had “a photographic memory and knew baseball statistics for all the greats and the current (St. Louis) Cardinal team,” his biography states. Blake was involved in Little League and the Cub Scouts.
Roger Matile contributed to this report
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