Second woman arrested in murder conspiracy case

An Illinois great-grandmother was the second family member arrested in connection with a murder plot that had her granddaughter's husband as the intended victim.

Illinois State Police troopers picked up Helen A. Severs, 66, at her home in Ullin, Ill., on Tuesday. She is charged with conspiracy to commit murder.

Investigators say Severs' daughter, Linda Myers, planned to buy a gun to kill her son-in-law. Severs was to supply the money.

But a police informant helped set up a Monday-night meeting between Myers and a Missouri State Highway Patrol undercover officer in a Cape Girardeau mall parking lot.

The officer reportedly sold Myers the gun and then arrested her. She remained in the Cape Girardeau County Jail on Wednesday in lieu of $100,000 bond.

After Myers' arrest, Severs reportedly called the undercover officer about the use of a homemade silencer because the intended victim, Michael Ravellette of Jonesboro, Ill., lives near the Union County Courthouse and the police station.

Severs waived extradition from Illinois and is in the Cape Girardeau County Jail, also in lieu of $100,000 bond.

Police say the motive behind the case is Myers' and Severs' apparent belief that Ravellette molested his 3-year-old daughter.

However, there are no sex-related charges pending against him in Union County, and he denies the allegation.