Police find no connection between murder suspect, victim

McHenry County authorities say they continue to search for answers as to how and why a former Arlington Heights man would have brought a homeless man into his apartment Monday, then stabbed him to death.

Woodstock Police Chief Robert Lowen said Wednesday investigators so far have found no relationship between murder suspect Kyle W. Morgan and Robin A. Burton, a 28-year-old transient man found dead in the accused's apartment.

"I don't think there is (a relationship)," Lowen said. "Our feeling is that they just crossed paths."

Detectives hope to find answers to some of their questions Thursday when they travel to Nashville to attempt to question Morgan.

Morgan, 24, of Woodstock, faces a charge of first-degree murder alleging he stabbed Burton multiple times and left him dead in his residence while he fled the state.

Investigators have not uncovered a clear-cut motive for the killing, but Lowen referenced Morgan's MySpace Web page - since taken down by the social networking site - in which he expresses interest in serial killers and lists "The Satanic Bible" and "The Anarchist Cookbook" as two of his favorite books.

"The guy was infatuated with evil and death and that sort of thing," Lowen said. "I don't know if he had some kind of master plan to do this or what the reasons are."

A collection of photos Morgan posted on the Internet shows he had a fascination with killers, both real and fictional. Among the photos were several of Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker in the latest "Batman" film, along with images of Charles Manson, Ted Bundy and Timothy McVeigh.

Photos also show tattoos on Morgan's back reading "Serial Killer" and "666."

Family members Tuesday issued a statement offering sympathy to those affected by his actions and stating that Morgan has a long history of unsuccessful battles with mental illness.

Police in Nashville, Tenn., arrested him Tuesday afternoon after he apparently panicked when a Tennessee state trooper drove up behind his car in the city's downtown. Morgan, police said, tried to get away by driving on a sidewalk. He struck two pedestrians before colliding with a tree and getting his car trapped between the tree and a building, authorities said.

Morgan, along with pedestrians Allison Gwyn and Blake Parsons, both 23, were hospitalized with what authorities said were non-life-threatening injuries.

Woodstock police were summoned Monday to Morgan's unit at the Prairie View Apartments on the 300 block of Leah Lane after a maintenance man found Burton's body.

"There was a fair amount of blood," Lowen said. "Obviously, it was a crime scene from the moment officers got there."

The body was discovered on the floor of the one-bedroom apartment and a knife believed to be the murder weapon was recovered. It did not appear as if the scene had been staged, Lowen said.

An autopsy performed Tuesday indicated Burton died as a result of a collapsed lung and hemorrhaging from multiple stab wounds, police said.

Morgan, according to his two Web sites, is an artist and musician. On one site he refers to himself as "Thrill Kill Kyle" and states he has pen-pal relationships with several serial killers.

Although he does not appear to have a record of violent crime, police in Arlington Heights Wednesday revealed he was involved in a violent episode with a girlfriend about six months ago.

Morgan, police said, seriously injured himself when he cut his own wrists and jumped off a second-floor balcony in downtown Arlington Heights July 30 after an argument with his girlfriend, said Cmdr. Ken Galinski of the Arlington Heights Police Department.

"According to the girlfriend, they were just sitting there when he got up and started choking her," Galinski said. "Then he pulled a knife on her and took a razor blade and slit his wrists."

Morgan, who police said was highly intoxicated at the time, spent about a week in a hospital recovering from his injuries. His girlfriend never pressed charges, so Morgan wasn't arrested, Galinski said.

A second Web site Morgan created promotes his art work, mostly Jackson Pollock-inspired abstracts. He states on the site that he spent a year at Columbia College in Chicago and also attended an art school in Colorado.

A spokesman at Harper College in Palatine said Morgan took a handful of art and music classes there between 2003 and 2007, but never graduated.

• Daily Herald staff writer Sheila Ahern contributed to this report.

Murder: Police say suspect had violent episode last year

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