Navy Vet Killed by Teen in Clown Costume After Chilling Doorbell Encounter

A 78-year-old Navy veteran was allegedly stabbed to death in a horrifying random attack by a teenager dressed as a clown — and his devastated family says authorities identified him partly because of the hospital bracelet still wrapped around his wrist.

John Wesley Allen Sr., a retired bus driver and longtime family man, had reportedly been feeling sick Monday and visited a Veterans Affairs hospital for medical testing.

After leaving the hospital, Allen was believed to be making his way to the home of his oldest sister, Delores Fowler, for one of his familiar unannounced visits.

He never made it.

Investigators say Allen was attacked at a bus stop by a 15-year-old wearing a clown costume. The teen allegedly stabbed the elderly veteran to death before fleeing the scene.

Allen’s relatives told 5 On Your Side that the hospital bracelet he was still wearing helped officials identify him.

The killing has left the family struggling to understand how an ordinary trip home could end in such brutal violence.

Allen was known for unexpectedly dropping by his sister’s house rather than making plans ahead of time.

“He’d never make an appointment. He’d just call me and say, ‘Are you at home?’ Then I’d say, ‘Yeah, I’ll come get you at the MetroLink station or the bus stop,’” Fowler told NBC News.

Adding another disturbing twist to the case, surveillance footage reportedly captured the clown-costumed teenager behaving bizarrely shortly before Allen was killed.

Ring doorbell footage from a nearby home allegedly shows a person wearing a clown outfit and surgical mask approaching the front door, staring wide-eyed directly into the camera.

“I’ve been looking for you,” the individual says in the chilling clip, which was timestamped around 9:11 p.m. Monday.

Illinois State Police said authorities were later called to a report of “a body in the roadway.”

When officers arrived, investigators quickly developed a juvenile suspect and later located the teenager at a residence, where he was taken into custody.

The 15-year-old was formally charged with first-degree murder on August 6.

Because the suspect is a juvenile, authorities have released limited identifying information.

Allen’s relatives said they have no known connection to the accused teen, deepening the mystery surrounding the apparent attack.

“I’m just wondering why this person did this. He didn’t know my brother,” Allen’s sister, Marie Stanford, told 5 On Your Side. “He just came up and random stabbing him. That don’t make no sense.”

Allen’s niece, Tenia Stanford, said the family is now being forced to cope with an unimaginable loss after what they believe was a completely random act of violence.

“Now we have to sit here and go through this pain and suffering because of some random act?” she said.

Allen was the youngest of six siblings and had spent more than three decades working as a bus driver.

His niece said he had driven buses for more than 35 years without experiencing anything remotely like the violence that allegedly ended his life.

“My uncle has been driving buses over 35 years, and this is the first time ever something happened to him… getting off the bus,” she told the outlet.

Now, instead of preparing for another surprise visit from Allen, his family is preparing to bury a Navy veteran while demanding answers about why a teenager allegedly dressed as a clown targeted a man they say he did not even know.