PARK RIDGE, ILL. — Gerald Dhamer, 48, president of a suburban Chicago plumbing firm, was gunned down Nov. 13 by a ski-masked assailant who shot him two to three times at close range with a shotgun, police said. Dhamer was accosted by the gunman at 6:15 a.m., his usual time to leave for work, as he left his home here.

Dhamer was president of Jim Dhamer Plumbing & Sewer Inc. in Lisle, Ill. The company is co-owned by Gerald Dhamer's brother Jim, although Gerald had taken over day-to-day operations in 2001.

Dhamer's wife, Cathy, reportedly heard conversation outside and the gunshots. She saw the assailant and called 911, but the killer had apparently gotten into a vehicle and left before police arrived.

The Chicago Tribune reported that Park Ridge police had taken file boxes and computers from the plumbing firm in the search for a motive for the killing. A source told the Tribune that the killing appeared to be a professional hit.

The family has established a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killer. At press time, police had no suspects.

Jim Dhamer Plumbing is the plumbing contractor used by CONTRACTOR Managing Editor Robert Mader.