Round Lake man convicted in killing of 77-year-old Fox Lake resident

A 38-year-old Round Lake man faces a minimum 45 years in prison after a Lake County jury convicted him Monday of first-degree murder in the 2022 slaying of a Fox Lake man.

Azim Ibrahim was found guilty after a five-day trial during which jurors heard from more than a dozen witnesses, including a former co-defendant of the accused, according to the Lake County state’s attorney’s office.

The charges alleged Ibrahim fatally shot Roy Hoffman, 77, during a Dec. 12, 2022 confrontation at the victim’s home.

Authorities said phone records, eyewitnesses and surveillance video indicated Hoffman had arranged to have a “romantic relationship” with a woman on the night of his killing. Ibrahim drove the woman to Hoffman’s apartment and waited for her outside, authorities said.

Eyewitnesses testified that at some point, Ibrahim got a high-powered pistol from his vehicle, entered Hoffman’s building and forced his way into the apartment. He then ordered Hoffman to the ground and shot him, before leaving with the woman, authorities said.

Police responding to a report of shots fired at the Mineola Avenue apartment building found Hoffman dead from a gunshot wound to his head.

After his arrest the next day, Ibrahim told police that he was defending himself and the woman after she told him she had been sexually assaulted, authorities said. He also testified at trial that he had acted in self-defense.

However, the woman told the jury that she never claimed she had been sexually assaulted and that Hoffman did not threaten Ibrahim before the deadly shooting.

After the verdict, Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart said Ibrahim killed Hoffman “in cold blood.”

“This case started with acts of exploitation against the woman in question and turned into a tragic murder,” he added.

The woman pleaded guilty in May to charges of obstructing justice and making a false report, according to Lake County court records. Under her plea deal, she was sentenced to six months in jail - time she already had served by that point - and two years of probation. She also was required to testify against Ibrahim, records show.

Ibrahim had his bond revoked after his conviction and will remain in custody at the Lake County jail until his sentencing, which is set for Feb. 20.