Prosecutors say the attack began during a late-night drive and ended at a family home in Will County.

CRETE TOWNSHIP, Ill. — An Indiana woman is accused of killing the father of her two children and his parents in a series of shootings in unincorporated Crete, where deputies answering a welfare check found three bodies early March 23 and later arrested her across the state line.

Authorities say Jenna Strouble, 30, of St. John, Indiana, now faces nine counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Jacob Lambert, 32, Stacy Forde, 54, and Patrick Forde, 55. The case drew wider attention after prosecutors laid out a detailed account of what they say was a planned attack, beginning with a late-night drive and ending at the Norway Trail home where Lambert’s family lived. Strouble remained in custody after an initial court appearance was delayed, and prosecutors asked that she be held pending trial.

The investigation began at about 2 a.m. on March 23, when Will County sheriff’s deputies were sent to the 3400 block of East Norway Trail for a welfare check. Deputies found Lambert dead in a car outside and his mother and stepfather dead inside the home near the front door, authorities said. The sheriff’s office later identified Strouble as the suspect and said the killings appeared targeted and domestic in nature. Prosecutors said Strouble had been in an on-again, off-again relationship with Lambert since 2020 and that they shared two young children. In court filings described by local media, prosecutors said she picked Lambert up sometime after 11 p.m. on March 22 after asking him to go for a drive.

According to prosecutors, the two first went toward Plum Creek Nature Preserve, but it was closed, so Strouble pulled over on Burnham Road in Sauk Village. There, prosecutors said, she told Lambert she had a surprise for him and offered a back massage. Court documents say Lambert reclined the passenger seat, removed his shirt and hat, and lay on his stomach while Strouble massaged him for about 20 minutes. During that time, prosecutors said, she took out a Glock that had been stored under the seat and held it to the back of his head for several minutes before firing. Prosecutors said she later told investigators she had gone there “with an intention,” and had at one point considered stopping but went through with the shooting anyway.

After Lambert was shot, prosecutors said, Strouble lit a cigarette and drove to his family’s home on East Norway Trail. She allegedly tried to get in using Lambert’s keys. When Patrick Forde came to the door and asked who was there, prosecutors said, she answered and said she was there with Lambert. Once the door opened, she began shooting from the porch and kept firing as she entered the house, according to court records described by local outlets. Patrick Forde was struck repeatedly in the chest and abdomen, while Stacy Forde came down the stairs after hearing the gunfire and was shot there, prosecutors said. Deputies later found shell casings in the entry area and on the floor near the victims.

Authorities say the case quickly stretched across state lines. After the shootings, prosecutors said, Strouble drove back to St. John and called her sister, telling her what had happened. The sister then contacted police, according to prosecutors. Officers in Indiana went to Strouble’s home, where prosecutors said she came outside and handed them a bag containing a loaded Glock 19 fitted with a suppressor. A vehicle registered to Lambert was found less than a block away, and Strouble’s children and her parents were inside the home, prosecutors said. The sheriff’s office said investigators recovered a firearm that matched the one used in the killings, though early reports did not publicly identify the weapon type.

As the case moved into court, prosecutors offered a picture of planning but only a limited account of motive. They said Strouble complained about Lambert’s parenting, his relationship with the children, and what she saw as overbearing behavior by his family. NBC Chicago reported that prosecutors said Strouble “didn’t provide much of a motive” beyond a general dislike and family tensions. Prosecutors also said she wrote a note the night before the killings listing people she thought could care for her children, and that she told her sister she wanted help arranging care for them. Officials have not suggested a threat to the broader public, but they have said the allegations show preparation, including the purchase of the gun in late 2025 and a suppressor bought online.

The legal case is still in an early stage. Strouble was first held in Lake County, Indiana, while Illinois authorities pursued extradition. By March 30 and March 31, she had made an initial appearance in Will County court, but a detention hearing was postponed because her attorney was handling another case, according to ABC7 Chicago and CBS Chicago. Prosecutors asked that she remain jailed pending trial. Autopsies were completed, but early reports said final cause-and-manner findings would follow police and toxicology reports. For now, the case remains centered on what investigators say was a deliberate series of shootings that began in a parked car and ended at a family doorway.

Author note: Last updated April 16, 2026.