Fugitive who fled to Poland after deadly 2020 crash in Wheeling extradited to U.S.
A fugitive who fled to Poland following a fiery 2020 car crash in Wheeling that killed two people is back in the suburbs to face charges here, police announced Friday.
Sebastian P. Kuczek is charged with two counts of reckless homicide, Wheeling police said. He’d been awaiting extradition since an arrest last year.
Wheeling police took custody of Kuczek on Thursday night in Chicago after he was flown to O’Hare International Airport, Deputy Wheeling Police Chief Michael Conway said. Kuczek was scheduled to appear in Cook County circuit court Friday morning.
The deadly crash occurred about 7:30 p.m. on June 23, 2020, on Lake-Cook Road east of Northgate Parkway.
Kuczek, who lived in Chicago at the time, was heading west at 152 mph in a 2017 Jaguar XJR when he crashed into the back of a 2006 Honda Civic, police said. The Civic then crossed into the eastbound lanes and hit a 2005 Toyota RAV4 before bursting into flames, authorities said.
Killed were 62-year-old Arthur Matillano of Buffalo Grove and 49-year-old Brenda L. Felix-Soria of Palatine. Matillano was driving the Civic and was pronounced dead on the scene; Felix-Soria was driving the RAV4 and died at Glenbrook Hospital in Glenview.
Kuczek was hospitalized and then fled overseas before he was charged, police said Friday. He didn’t have a valid driver’s license at the time of the crash, police said.
Wheeling police worked with the FBI and Interpol to track down and capture Kuczek.
Both victims’ families have been told Kuczek is behind bars, Conway said.
“They were very thankful and relieved,” Conway said. “We hope this will give them some closure to this terrible situation.”
Kuczek reportedly had been driving the Jaguar to an unspecified suburban auto dealership from an auction in Wisconsin, attorneys for Matillano’s family said in a 2022 news release. The family settled a lawsuit against the dealership for $12 million.
A representative for the law firm couldn’t immediately be reached for comment Friday.
rlissau@dailyherald.com