By Jim Hagerty
Reporter

ROCKFORD – A 53-year-old man is in custody for allegedly stabbing a man to death in Pecatonica Thursday night.

David W. Baldwin was jailed in Wisconsin Friday on unrelated charges. He was later charged in Winnebago County, Illinois, with four counts of first-degree murder.

Police say about 9:30 p.m., Thursday, deputies were dispatched to Baldwin’s Pecatonica home at 333 E. Seventh Street in response to an incident involving a knife. When officers arrived, they located the body of 52-year-old Scott A. Rocen inside the house. He’d been stabbed.

According to Wisconsin court records, on Aug. 20, Baldwin was released from a prison near Madison, where he was serving time for failure to pay child support. Local records show he was charged with retail theft and driving under the influence of alcohol in 2018. A Sept. 17 court date is pending in those cases.

Baldwin’s relationship with Rocen is unclear.