Woodridge man accused of killing dad with weed trimmer

In a rambling confession, a Woodridge man admitted to the weekend fatal bludgeoning of his father with a weed trimmer, prosecutors said Monday.

Yashesh Desai, 21, appeared Monday in DuPage County bond court on first-degree murder charges in the early Sunday slaying of 47-year-old Sanjiv J. Desai, and was ordered held on $2 million bail.

During the brief appearance, the defendant at times smiled and rocked back and forth while telling a judge he had held a job since “the beginning of time.” At another point, he asked, “What state do you want? Alaska?”

“He made statements about how he beat his dad's brains in,” State's Attorney Robert Berlin said, “but also commented about Godzilla, the Turks, the ‘red shield,' x and y chromosomes” and other things, including a “need for 23 million soldiers.”

Judge John Demling granted prosecutors' request to order a psychological evaluation for the defendant in anticipation of a possible insanity defense.

Berlin said police arrested Yashesh Desai shortly after 3 a.m. Sunday after his younger brother called 911, saying Desai had just killed their father at their home on the 0-100 block of Plover Court.

He said officers arrived moments later to find the elder Desai suffering from massive head wounds, lying on a futon, where he had been sleeping when he was attacked.

Berlin said Yashesh Desai told officers at the scene that his father owed him money and that he struck the elder Desai in the temple with a weed trimmer several times. Berlin said investigators learned Desai had been taking medication for major depressive disorder when the killing happened. He said both Desai's brother and mother were home at the time. Police recovered a weed trimmer, broken in half, near the Desais' front door, Berlin said. An autopsy later showed the victim died of massive head trauma.

Assistant State's Attorney Helen Kapas said Yashesh Desai was kicked out of the University of Illinois in Champaign last September after he was charged with threatening fellow students with a knife. She said he ended up being sentenced to court supervision for aggravated assault.

Several family members of the victim and defendant consoled each other during Monday's bond hearing. They declined to comment as they left court.

Desai appeared via video stream from the county jail, wearing a yellow outfit indicating he was on suicide watch. At one point, he told the judge, “Here's the verdict” — but was not allowed to finish.

Desai returns to court Monday and is scheduled for arraignment Sept. 12 in front of Judge George Bakalis.