Call to Rock Falls attorney preceded Sheley’s arrest

ROCK FALLS - Although the vigilance of a few Granite City bar patrons has been credited for the capture of Nicholas T. Sheley, a Rock Falls attorney sitting 250 miles away might actually have played an equal or greater role. KPLR-TV in St. Louis reported Wednesday that Sheley called his former attorney, Jim Mertes, from a Subway sandwich shop in Granite City Tuesday evening, shortly before he was taken into custody. The phone call was the last of many conversations Sheley had with the attorney, who was working under the direction of the FBI, a person close to the investigation told The Associated Press. The source spoke on the condition of anonymity, because the investigation is ongoing. The Subway is in the Crossroads strip mall, adjacent