DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - A Forsyth man on trial for the shooting and killing of another man in Argenta has been sentenced to 50 years.
Phillip Gehrken, 52, was found guilty by a jury in Macon County Circuit Court in Febuary.
On Tuesday, Gehrken was sentenced 50 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections to be followed by a 3-year period of Mandatory Supervised Release.
The judge also ruled Gehrken to serve 100% of his sentence, and allowed the credit for his time previously served in custody from July 12, 2021 through March 27, 2023.
In July 2021, authorities responded at 6:20 p.m. Sunday to 7414 Jordan Road in Argenta for a report of someone being shot. They arrived and found the suspect, Gehrken, on the scene with three other people, according to a sworn affidavit obtained by WAND News.
The victim, 51-year-old Kevin M. Cooper, was found lying on his back about 10 feet from the front side of an excavator. Authorities said they found multiple spent shell casings next to the victim, and a gun was recovered from the scene.
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Gehrken had claimed the shooting happened because Cooper, who came to the address of the shooting to return equipment, had tried to pull him off an excavator.
Gehrken and Cooper had been involved in a feud related to finances for several weeks, authorities said.
The suspect has a 1999 conviction on his record in Macon County and is not allowed to be in possession of a firearm, the affidavit said.
The sentencing hearing for Gehrken has been set for 3/28/2023 at 10:00 a.m.
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