Darien murder suspect expected back in Illinois soon
As an important 72-hour deadline approached for Darien police regarding one man questioned in a triple slaying, his friend agreed to return to Illinois from Florida to face prosecution after incriminating himself, law enforcement sources said.
Jacob B. Nodarse waived extradition Thursday in a Florida courtroom, one day after police closed in on him outside his parents' home in Lehigh Acres, near Fort Myers, with a DuPage County obstruction of justice warrant.
Detectives were expected to bring the 23-year-old Countryside man back to Illinois within 24 hours. Prosecutors have not announced further charges against Nodarse, but, the sources said, he made incriminating statements about his involvement in Tuesday's fatal shootings during a videotaped police interview.
Also Thursday, Indiana State Police recovered several items of key evidence - including what sources said may be the murder weapon - from a garbage container outside an IHOP restaurant near Interstate 70 in Terre Haute that detectives believe Nodarse traveled through on his way to Florida.
"We sent crime technicians and a trooper and did locate a substantial amount of evidence that we believe is connected to the triple homicide," said Sgt. Joe Watts of the Indiana State Police.
Jeffrey Kramer, 50, his wife, Lori, 48, and son Michael, 20, were each shot multiple times with the same gun - a .40-caliber Glock - after being ambushed in their home.
A joint visitation for the couple and their son will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. Sunday at Hallowell & James Funeral Home in Downers Grove, followed by an 11 a.m. Monday Mass at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Darien. Instead of flowers, mourners are urged to make a donation to an animal shelter of their choice.
The slain couple's daughter, Angela, 25, made a frantic 911 call at 3 a.m. Tuesday while hiding in an upstairs closet. Her older brother and a 17-year-old girl also narrowly escaped unharmed. None reported seeing the gunman, police said.
Meanwhile, Angela Kramer's 28-year-old ex-boyfriend - with whom she has a 13-month-old son - has been held without charges since 8 a.m. Tuesday at the Darien police station, sources said. Prosecutors typically have a 72-hour window to hold someone without charges.
DuPage State's Attorney Joseph Birkett and the ex-boyfriend's attorney, Marc Wolfe, are expected to meet Friday morning to discuss the case. Wolfe declined to comment, but other sources have said his client was gambling at an Joliet riverboat at the time of the shootings - an alibi supported by video surveillance footage and credit cards receipts.
Authorities are investigating a link between Nodarse and Angela Kramer's ex-boyfriend, whom the Daily Herald is not naming because he has not been charged. The two men are friends, sources said.
Ismael Nodarse defended his grandson Thursday. The 74-year-old Miami man said such violence is out of character for his grandson.
"He wouldn't hurt a fly," the grandfather said late Thursday in a brief telephone interview. "I just don't believe it."
Angela Kramer and her ex-boyfriend have been involved in a custody court case since January over their 13-month-old son, court records showed. They recently hammered out a custody/visitation agreement where they would meet at a restaurant along Route 83 to exchange the child. The ex-boyfriend would have had visitation at the time of the shooting, according to the court records. The child is now in Angela Kramer's care, sources said.
Autopsies showed all three victims died of multiple gunshot wounds from the same weapon. No shots were from point-blank range, and there were no defensive wounds to indicate a struggle.
• ABC 7 contributed to this report.
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<li><a href="/story/?id=363236">'Prime suspect' in Darien murders found in Florida <span class="date">[03/03/2010]</span></a></li>
<li><a href="/story/?id=362907">Couple, son shot to death in Darien home invasion <span class="date">[03/02/2010]</span></a></li>
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