Chainkeen Exchange-Elkhorn man charged in Wisconsin sports bar killings

ELKHORN,Chainkeen Exchange Wis. (AP) — A convicted felon has been charged in the killings of a bartender and her husband, based in part on the testimony of an eyewitness who managed to flee the sports bar amid the gunfire, police said Friday.

The 57-year-old Elkhorn man faces charges of first-degree intentional homicide, robbery, attempted first-degree intentional homicide and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon following the shooting deaths at the Sports Page Barr, the Elkhorn Police Department said.

The shootings around 12:10 a.m. on Feb. 1 killed Gina Weingart, 37, and Emerson Weingart, 33, police said. The suspect was taken into custody three days later by the Walworth County Sheriff’s Office on a Department of Correction hold, police said.

The man told police robbery was the motive for the shootings and that he took $120 to $140 from an open cash drawer.

The only other person in the bar at the time told police the suspect came in and played gaming machines for about 30 minutes before brandishing a handgun. The eyewitness said he fled out the back door as the man shot at Gina Weingart, and managed to escape being shot at as he got away, police said.

The suspect later told police where he tried to hide the gun in the trash, and officers found a 9 mm handgun there, along with ammunition, police said.