After St. Charles Twp. residents tip police, California murder suspect shoots himself outside
A man accused of murder in California died Wednesday when he shot himself in the driveway of his parents' home in St. Charles Township after a neighbor tipped police off to him, officials said.
Authorities responded about 3 p.m. to the 3N600 block of Bittersweet Road for a reported sighting of suspect Mark Sypien, according to the Kane County sheriff's office. Sypien, 51, of Dublin, California, was wanted in the murder of John Moore, 76, of Danville, California, who was shot and killed Sunday.
Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain said his office warned neighbors that Sypien might return to the area and to be on the lookout. Hain said a neighbor saw Sypien pull into the street in a white Ford Escape and called 911 around 3 p.m.
As squad cars arrived at Dean Street and Bittersweet Road, Hain said, Sypien pulled out a handgun and shot himself in the head. Sypien was found on the front lawn and taken to the hospital.
Hain confirmed later Wednesday that he died at the hospital.
"We just knew he had strong ties to the St. Charles area," Hain said. "It's where he grew up. His parents still live here, and we suspected he would return to the area."
No other injuries were reported.
The Mercury News in San Jose reported that court records and emails demonstrated a history of bad blood between Sypien and Moore's family dating to 2014.
Sypien apparently dated Moore's daughter in the late 2000s. That relationship ended in 2014, when the Moore family began filing restraining orders describing acts of domestic violence, threats, stalking and harassment, according to The Mercury News.
Sypien also is accused of writing harassing emails to Moore in 2016 promising to "get back in touch" with him, the newspaper reported. Moore then emailed his family warning that Sypien might return to California after serving a jail sentence in DeKalb County for violating a protective order after a 2004 domestic battery conviction.
Danville, California, police responded about 2:25 p.m. Sunday to a parking lot where Moore was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds, according to the department's Facebook page. An arrest warrant for Sypien was issued Monday.
• Daily Herald staff writer Susan Sarkauskas contributed to this report.