After more than three decades, Robert D. Mason III, 54, has pleaded guilty to attempted murder and identity theft charges related to a 1994 case in Alton. Mason was located last summer in Kalamazoo, Michigan, after investigators were tipped off by the victim of the identity theft, who reported suspicious activity to police.
The original charges, filed by then-State’s Attorney Bill Haine, allege that Mason shot a man four times with intent to kill and forcibly entered an Alton woman’s home while armed on May 15, 1994. Mason vanished shortly after the incident, remaining at large until his capture nearly 30 years later.
Current Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine remarked on the significance of concluding a case initiated by his father decades ago. Mason was sentenced to 10 years in prison following his guilty plea.
