Qdoba Employee Fatally Shot in Belleville Parking Lot, Two Suspects Arrested

Montavion Conrad, a 20-year-old Qdoba Mexican Eats employee, was shot and killed in the parking lot of the Belleville Crossing shopping center on Sunday afternoon after a suspect from Collinsville recognized him during what began as a food pickup gone wrong. St. Clair County Coroner Calvin Dye Sr. identified Conrad, a Belleville resident, and confirmed he was pronounced dead at Belleville Memorial Hospital at 4:17 p.m. on March 15.

Belleville police were dispatched to the strip mall near the intersection of Illinois 15 and Frank Scott Parkway at 3:49 p.m. Officers arrived to find Conrad suffering from a gunshot wound, rendered aid, and secured the scene before beginning their investigation.

According to police, the suspect and a female juvenile, both from Collinsville, had placed a Wing Stop order believing it would be fulfilled at the Collinsville location. When they learned the order had been routed to the Belleville Crossing Wing Stop instead, they drove there to pick it up. The strip mall houses Qdoba, Wing Stop, West Belleville Nail Spa, and an AT&T store. Upon arriving, the suspect recognized Conrad, who was working at the adjacent Qdoba, from what police described as "previous encounters from past relationship issues." The two men exchanged words, and Conrad moved toward the suspect as if a fight was about to occur. The suspect produced a handgun and shot him.

"Interpersonal drama and the opportunity to settle an old score led to tragedy and a young life lost," Acting Police Chief Mark Heffernan said in a department release.

After securing the scene, officers gathered suspect information including a vehicle description. Witnesses at the scene identified the car, and Belleville patrol officers located the vehicle and pursued it with assistance from other agencies. The pursuit ended when the vehicle crashed in the 6600 block of Old St. Louis Road. Two occupants fled on foot. Police established a perimeter, conducted a search, and took both suspects into custody. The male suspect from Collinsville and the female juvenile from Collinsville remain in custody; police had not publicly released their names at the time of reporting, and no formal charges had been announced.

The director of operations at the Belleville Crossing Qdoba declined to comment on the killing. Adnan Bajramaliu, vice president of operations for parent company North Fork Fresh Mex, emailed a statement to the Belleville News-Democrat, though its contents were not disclosed. The investigation remains ongoing.