Wednesday morning around 9:40 am, Moline police responded to the 3300 block of 25th Ave and found 55-year old Steven Herring dead in his home.
About an hour later, police found 79-year old Donna Ericson dead in a home on the 1800 block of 46th St.
Police say both people had been shot with a handgun.
Investigators pieced together evidence from interviews, videos and cell phone records. Around 3 pm, police got warrants to search an Aledo home belonging to Ericson's son and Herring's friend, 55-year old Chad Hillyer. He wasn't home, but investigators found a shell casing there that matched casings found at the victims' homes.
Around 9 pm, Coralville police found Hillyer dead in a car, on a rural road just off I-380. He had died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The Rock Island County Coroner will conduct autopsies on Herring and Ericson on Friday. The Johnson County Medical Examiner is investigating Hillyer's death.
Moline police say this case is "large and complex" and that the forensic evidence could take several months to analyze.
Multiple agencies assisted in the investigation.
