A 78-year-old Maquon woman is in custody on murder charges in the death of the village’s former police chief.
Karen J. Doubet was arrested on a Knox County warrant at her Maquon home. She's accused in the death of Richard Young, whose decomposing remains were found in a Maquon storage unit in October 2022.
Doubet is charged with first degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery by administering a toxic substance, and concealment of a homicidal death, according to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.
Marcy L. Oglesby, 52, is also charged in the case. Oglesby was initially arrested in 2022 for concealment of a death after the discovery of Young’s remains.
But the charges against Oglesby were upgraded to murder, aggravated battery by administering a toxic substance, and concealment of a homicidal death in February 2023, as the investigation advanced.
The amended charges were dismissed by Judge Andrew Doyle over concerns Oglesby’s right to a speedy trial was being violated.
But the Appellate Court reversed Doyle’s decision, and the Illinois Supreme Court then denied Oglesby’s petition for leave to appeal.
Oglesby is accused of poisoning Young with eye drops and other medication and hiding his body in the storage unit.
At a preliminary hearing for Oglesby in February 2023, law enforcement testified that Oglesby had been in a relationship with Young for about 20 years.
Young lived in Oglesby’s home, across the street from the storage unit, with a third person that law enforcement identified as Doubet.
Investigators said Doubet considered herself a godmother to Oglesby – and both Doubet and Oglesby told them that Young died from a broken neck after falling in the bathroom.
In a release, the sheriff’s office said its investigations unit has worked closely with interim state’s attorney Sherry Lawson-Weaver and assistant state’s attorney Ashley Worby on the case.
