Kenadee Wallenfang, 18, was shot on the afternoon of June 3, 2025, along Peoria’s riverfront in the 100 block of Southwest Water Street. Officers responding to a report around 3:19 p.m. found her beside an SUV with a gunshot wound to the back of her head. She was taken to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, placed on life support, and died the next day, June 4, 2025.

Detectives quickly identified 19-year-old Deziaah Z. Hunter as the person suspected of firing the shot inside a vehicle on the riverfront. Hunter was interviewed and arrested on June 4, initially charged with aggravated battery with a firearm and reckless conduct while Wallenfang remained on life support. After Wallenfang’s death, the case was presented to a Peoria County grand jury and on June 24, 2025 Hunter was indicted on first-degree murder. Hunter told investigators the gun discharged accidentally; prosecutors pursued a homicide charge based on the investigation of what occurred in and around the vehicle on Southwest Water Street.

Kenadee Wallenfang’s death moved rapidly from an emergency call to arrest and indictment, leaving questions about the circumstances inside the vehicle and what led to the fatal shot. If anyone saw activity on the riverfront that afternoon or has information about the vehicle and occupants, please share what is known.