Bond set for man charged in murder
Bond was set at $1 million Monday for a 33-year-old homeless man accused of beating another homeless man to death behind a Hanover Park strip mall last week.
Authorities accuse Antonio Pacheco of attacking Alexis F. Roman after, Pacheco told them, Roman made a sexual overture to him while the two were drinking together the night of Sept. 5.
Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Scott Biestek said in court Monday that Pacheco has confessed to the slaying on video and audio recordings. He faces two counts of first-degree murder.
Prosecutors said Pacheco pushed the 31-year-old Roman away after the unwanted sexual advances and struck him in the head multiple times with a rock. Roman fell, and Pacheco went on to stab him in the neck two times with a tree branch, authorities said.
They also said that, before fleeing the scene, Pacheco used a blanket to cover up the still-breathing, partially undressed Roman.
Prosecutors said Pacheco then went to a nearby convenience store, where he stayed for an unknown time, and then spent the night in the laundry room of an area apartment building.
Roman was discovered the next morning about 10 a.m. with the tree branch still protruding from his neck. The Cook County medical examiner's office found he suffered multiple injuries from an assault and ruled his death a homicide. Roman was identified by his brother.
Authorities said they found a backpack containing Pacheco's ID and bloody clothes. They said Pacheco ditched it in the wooded area near the Hanover Park Community Center and Maple Avenue, an area known as a hangout for the homeless.
Assistant Public Defender Joe Gump said Pacheco came to the U.S. illegally from Guererro, Mexico, four years ago. He's employed as a construction worker and doesn't have a wife or children.
He would have to post $100,000 to be released. Gump also said the Mexican Consulate will be notified of the situation.
It's not Pacheco's first run-in with Hanover Park police. Biestek said he was arrested in November 2005 for domestic battery and again last month for criminal damage to property.
Pacheco didn't appear in court to face either charge. No warrant was issued in the most recent arrest, and the domestic battery case was dismissed.
Pacheco is scheduled to appear in court again Oct. 5.