Battery charge upgraded to murder after Red Bud man who was set on fire dies
A Red Bud man known for following the St. Louis Cardinals died in a hospital weeks after being set on fire during a property dispute.
A battery charge against the suspect in the alleged crime has now become a first-degree murder charge.
Donald “Ennie” Steibel, 76, of Red Bud died July 6 at Mercy Hospital St. Louis, according to his obituary. This was 15 days after police said he was doused with an unknown combustible fluid on June 21.
Shawn Porter, 48, of Red Bud was charged with murder on Monday, according to Randolph County court records.
Red Bud Police Chief John Brittingham has said Steibel and Porter knew each other but declined to release details about the property dispute on Taylor Street.
Steibel suffered second- and third-degree burns, Brittingham said last month.
On Friday, Brittingham said he didn’t have additional information to release in the case he described as “unfortunate.”
Steibel enjoyed watching St. Louis Cardinals games, playing cards and going to auctions, according to his obituary with Pechacek Funeral Homes of Red Bud. A memorial service will be conducted at a later date.
Porter was being held in the Randolph County Jail on Friday in lieu of $1 million bond, Sheriff Jarrod Peters said.
A defense attorney for Porter could not be reached for comment.
Brittingham has said that after allegedly setting the man on fire, Porter barricaded himself inside his home on Mill Street, which is about half a block away from where the alleged crime was committed. During a standoff with police, he threatened to burn down the house, but after a couple of hours, police were able to enter the home and arrest him, Brittingham said.
Porter initially was charged with aggravated battery/great bodily harm to a person over 60, aggravated battery/bodily harm and resisting a police officer in connection with the assault on Steibel. Those charges were dismissed with the filing of the murder charge, according to court records.
A fitness hearing for Porter is scheduled for July 27 in connection with the murder charge.
Porter’s prior criminal record includes a conviction in 2018 for stalking. He was given a two-year prison sentence for that charge, according to court records.
Belleville News-Democrat reporter Garen Vartanian contributed information for this article.
