Inset (top): Michael Freund (DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office). Inset (bottom): Dexter Perkins (GoFundMe). Background: Rosie O’Reilly’s in Wheaton, Ill. (Google Maps).
An argument over pizza between two Illinois men ended with one of them dead.
Michael Freund, 51, was convicted on Oct. 9 of first‑degree murder for the fatal shooting of 37‑year‑old Dexter Perkins. The DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office said Freund and two coworkers headed to Rosie O’Reilly’s bar in Wheaton, Illinois, on the morning of Dec. 22, 2023, after finishing their shifts.
Perkins, a stranger to Freund and the others, was already at the bar when they arrived. The four decided to share a pizza, but when a second pie arrived, a dispute quickly flared.
According to prosecutors, Perkins handed Freund and one coworker a single slice each, then took the rest of the pizza home. That “led to a dispute between the men over the pizza and the bar tab.” As tempers rose, Freund stepped outside, retrieved a 9 mm Glock from his truck, and returned to the bar.
The confrontation moved to the bar’s front porch, where Perkins and one coworker began to scuffle. Freund drew his gun and fired two warning shots into the air. When Perkins lunged at his opponent, Freund aimed at Perkins and shot him “eight times in the torso and once in the face.” He then slipped the gun back into his truck’s console.
Police arrived, arrested Freund, and pronounced Perkins,father of two daughters,dead at the scene.
Freund is slated to appear for a presentencing hearing on Nov. 9.
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