Ex-Elgin resident admits murder attempt, Roselle townhouse arson

A former Elgin woman has pleaded guilty to attempted murder and aggravated arson for stabbing and trying to suffocate a woman and then setting her former boyfriend's Roselle townhouse on fire in July 2017.

Chevaz Odio, 30, entered her plea in front of DuPage County Judge George Bakalis Thursday afternoon. Bakalis will formally sentence Odio to 28 years in prison on Feb. 14.

Prosecutors said Odio went to her ex-boyfriend's home on the 600 block of Circle Drive about 2 a.m. on July 25, 2017, and began removing items from the townhouse. The ex-boyfriend was not home at the time, but a woman who was visiting and sleeping on the couch saw Odio and confronted her.

Odio stabbed the 20-year-old woman six or seven times with a sharp object and tried to suffocate her with a plastic bag. The woman managed to run away and lock herself in an upstairs bedroom, where she began to smell gasoline and smoke.

A man who was sleeping upstairs also smelled gas and smoke, and the two jumped out a second-floor window to escape. The woman dislocated her shoulder in the fall, while the man suffered minor injuries.

"This afternoon, (Odio) learned that for this outrageous behavior she will spend the next 28 years of her life behind bars," DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a written statement. "Thankfully, neither of the victims were seriously injured."

Prosecutors believe Odio set fire to the townhouse and then fled by stealing a silver sedan that was parked outside, knocking over a motorcycle in the process.

Court records show Odio was previously charged with domestic battery against her ex-boyfriend on April 7, 2017, when, authorities said, she forced her way into his townhouse and scratched his arm, causing a small abrasion.

She has been held on $2 million bail since her July 2017 arrest.