**Peoria Man Charged in 2024 Murder of Rankin Resident Frank Lucas**
RANKIN – Vermilion County Sheriff’s Department Captain Mike Hartshorn has stated that it could take anywhere from days to months before human remains discovered are positively identified as those of missing Rankin man Frank Lucas. The timeline largely depends on the processing speed of the Illinois State Police Crime Lab.
On Wednesday, the sheriff’s department announced that Johnny Gibson, 56, a Peoria man, has been charged in connection with the 2024 murder of Lucas. Gibson was taken into custody at his residence and faces charges of murder, dismembering a human body, and concealing a homicidal death. He is currently being held in the Vermilion County Jail.
Frank Lucas, 55, was reported missing on July 11, 2024. Investigators suspect that Lucas likely “died of homicidal means” and identified Gibson, a former neighbor, as a suspect.
On October 20, investigators located human remains believed to be those of Lucas in rural Champaign County. Official identification is still pending the Illinois State Police Crime Lab’s analysis.
Captain Hartshorn noted that the remains were found near the site of a trailer park fire in Ludlow that occurred the previous Friday. “It was nothing to do with the fire,” he stated. “Information from another source led us there.”
Last year when Lucas was reported missing, Hartshorn mentioned that Lucas had not been seen since July 8, 2024. “He was last officially seen leaving a job site in Champaign County,” Hartshorn said at the time. Lucas was employed by a tree service.
https://www.news-gazette.com/news/id-of-human-remains-discovered-near-ludlow-pending-in-murder-case/article_eea56a18-b98f-4716-bc23-0262c1caa5b1.html