Gabriel K. Cook, 32, of Peoria, Illinois, was reported missing on March 8, 2021. Deputies responding that day found a vehicle fire on Kickapoo Creek Road and a Jeep belonging to Cook’s grandmother that Cook primarily used. Witnesses saw Cook with Allen K. Schimmelpfennig earlier that day loading a motorbike into the Jeep, and security footage placed the Jeep near a storage locker rented by Schimmelpfennig.

Detectives later searched Schimmelpfennig’s storage locker and found a large pool of dried blood that matched Cook’s DNA. Investigators also recovered .380 shell casings matching one found in Schimmelpfennig’s apartment, the motorbike that had been loaded into the Jeep, and cellphone and GPS records linking Cook and Schimmelpfennig on the day of the incident. Forensic testimony at trial stated the amount of blood in the locker meant immediate medical attention would have been necessary for Cook to survive.

Cook’s remains were discovered in rural Peoria County more than three years after his disappearance; the Peoria County Coroner determined he died of a gunshot wound to the head. In May 2023 a jury convicted Schimmelpfennig of first-degree murder and concealment of a homicidal death; Schimmelpfennig was sentenced to 80 years. Anyone with information about Gabriel or his last known movements is asked to come forward.