Investigation leads to murder charges in case of Mundelein-area man reported missing in November
Two Mundelein-area men are charged with the murder of a man reported missing in early November, authorities said Thursday.
A Lake County Grand Jury on Wednesday returned indictments for first-degree murder against Dmitry Bogatiryov, 52, of the 26600 block of Kenwood Court and Damen Voranoff, 56, of the 26500 block of North Route 83, both in unincorporated Lake County near Mundelein.
They are charged in the death of Ruslan Furman, 51, last known to have lived in that area when he was reported missing.
In early November, Route 60/83 near the Diamond Lake Sports Complex was closed as detectives and a SWAT team searched a home for crime-related evidence. Authorities at the time said there may have been suspicious circumstances involving Furman's disappearance.
During the more than eight-month investigation, detectives executed numerous search warrants, conducted extensive forensic investigations, reviewed surveillance footage, interviewed witnesses and sent material to the Northeast Illinois Regional Crime Laboratory, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Detectives found Furman had been visiting acquaintances, Bogatiryov and Voranoff, around the time of his disappearance and the three were together at Bogatiryov's home, according to the release.
The home’s living room was found to have been recently remodeled including freshly stained hardwood flooring and fresh paint on the walls.
According to the release, pieces of drywall and subflooring were removed and confirmed at the crime lab as containing Furman’s blood. Testing later determined a reciprocating saw at Bogatiryov’s home also belonged to Furman, the release said.
Charred remnants of a couch that had been inside the home were found in a burn pile nearby and video surveillance showed the pair buying muriatic acid and “other suspicious items” at a hardware store, according to the release.
Based on the findings, detectives think the pair beat Furman to death, left him to die inside Bogatiryov's home and then dismembered the body and disposed of the remains, authorities said.
Detectives, specialized dive teams, fire personnel and partner law enforcement agencies searched Diamond Lake several times but could not locate the remains, the release said.
“We will continue searching for Mr. Furman's remains so his family can have final closure,” Sheriff John D. Idleburg said in a statement.
Both men were in custody on unrelated charges and were scheduled in court Thursday, according to the sheriff's office. The Lake County state's attorney's office planned to file a petition to detain the men in custody while awaiting trial on the new case.