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Ex-Bloomingdale man shot, killed in DeKalb

A former Bloomingdale man was shot to death in a drug deal, and two men have been charged with the murder, DeKalb police said.

Matthew Clark, 23, was shot in the chest about 10 p.m. Tuesday at a house on the 800 block of Pleasant Street. He was pronounced dead at 11:35 p.m. at Kishwaukee Community Hospital, according to a news release from the police department.

Trevor Motsinger of DeKalb and Christopher J. Gerken of Sycamore have been charged with first-degree murder.

Motsinger was arrested shortly after the shooting.

Gerken, 25, was arrested Wednesday morning at Routes 38 and 47 in Elburn, after leading police on a chase along Peace Road in DeKalb. Police from Elburn, St. Charles and the Kane County sheriff's department assisted in the arrest.

Motsinger arranged a drug sale between Gerken and Clark, police said. And, they said, Motsinger knew Gerken was planning to rob Clark, due to a prior drug sale that Gerken was upset over. Motsinger saw that Gerken had a handgun before Motsinger dropped him off near Clark's home.

When Gerken arrived, a struggle ensued, and Gerken shot Clark, police said.

Besides the murder charge, Motsinger was also charged with obstruction of justice and unlawful possession of controlled substances.

DeKalb County court records show that Matthew Clark of Bloomingdale was facing a misdemeanor charge of possession of marijuana from a July arrest.

Motsinger was convicted on a misdemeanor charge of possession of drug paraphernalia in a 2013 case, according to court records. And Gerken has a conviction for a 2012 case in which he was charged with growing marijuana plants, and a 2014 conviction for possession of pot.

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