Cops: Suspect held in Indian Head Park not related to girl’s slaying
BY Maureen odonnell, MAUDLYNE IHEJIRIKA, LAUREN FITZPATRICK and STEFANO ESPOSITO Staff Reporters October 28, 2011 6:58AM
Kelli O'Laughlin - Facebook photo | Sun-Times
The Village of Indian Head Park
• Population: 3,809
• Less than one square mile
• Bordered by Western Springs, Burr Ridge and Countryside
• Sits along I-294 in Cook County
• Incorporated on Aug. 4, 1959
• One murder in village history — Thursday’s
• Named for the Indian Head Golf Course that preceded the village, and for the arrowheads left in the area by the Potawatomie Tribe.
• Median family income: $78,443
Article Extras
Updated: November 30, 2011 8:03AM
Authorities said Saturday a suspect being held in custody is not the burglar that they believe killed a 14-year-old Indian Head park girl Thursday after she surprised him when she walked into her home after school.
Also Saturday, an area resident put up a $10,000 reward for information leading to the killer.
Sources close to the investigation Friday had said a suspect was in custody on the high-profile homicide. Kelli O’Laughlin, a freshman at Lyons Township High School, was found by her mother in their home on the 6300 block of Keokuk Road in the south suburb after 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
“There is somebody in cutody, but it’s for a different case,” Indian Head Park Police Chief Frank Alonzo said Saturday, referring to a burglary spree that hit Indian Head Park and Burr Ridge this summer. Arrests had been made earlier in connection with that spree.
“The suspect in custody is on a warrant for one of those past burglaries,” Alonzo said. “Somebody’s out there that did this,” he added. “We’re just as upset as the village residents. It’s a 14-year-old innocent young girl, and it’s affecting all these officers that are here. We’re not going to rest until we can conclude this.”
Authorities say the girl, returning home from school between 4:45 and 5:30 p.m., apparently foiled a burglary in the home, and was stabbed to death. Alonzo said the girl’s death was believed to be the first murder in the town’s history.
“Our heart goes out to the family,” said Alonzo, who confirmed that Kelli’s brother is an Illinois state trooper.
Police continued to ask the public’s help, saying tips may be phoned in to 708-246-4534.
Friends described Kelli as positive and friendly, someone who always had a smile on her face.
“Kelli was just always happy, always laughing,” said Bailey Hernandez, 14, who first met her when the two were in the same Girl Scout Daisy troop in kindergarten. “She brightened everybody’s day.”
Nathan Carnezal, 14, who had known her since first grade, described Kelli as “probably the nicest person ever to go to Lyons Township or Highlands [elementary and middle school].” He found out about the murder when classmates started calling each other around 9 p.m. Thursday.
“I didn’t want to believe it,” he said. “All I pretty much keep thinking is why her?”
Early Friday, police released a sketch of a dark-complexioned, African-American man, 25 to 35 years old, about 5-feet-8 or 5-feet-9 inches tall, with a medium build who was wearing a dark, hooded sweatshirt and had a patterned backpack or strap bag, whom they said a witness had seen walking near the O’Laughlin home.
Police also released images of rare gold coins that were missing from the home, hoping that a pawn shop employee might recognize them and call police. About four dozen officers from the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force are working on the case.
“Our community has been shaken,” Indian Head Park Mayor Richard Andrews said. “It feels as if we’ve all lost a family member.”
Gary Meyers, who has lived in the neighborhood for 32 years and lives a block from the O’Laughlin home, said it was common for people in the area to leave their homes unlocked until the burglary spree this summer. Now, he locks his doors and doesn’t walk his dog without his gun, said the Air Force veteran, patting his waist band, .
“I know the family,” he said. “The 14-year-old was an attractive young lady. She had two dogs and we’d run into each other walking our dogs. I could have cried when I heard.”
John Adams, who has lived in the neighborhood for three years, said the entire community was shaken. “Nobody wants to think this type of thing happens where they live but the fact of the matter is it does,” he said. “This is very, very tragic, especially for the family.”
Friday night, hundreds of candle flames flickered in the chill autumn air, as classmates and parents gathered outside Lyons Township High School to remember Kelli. There were hugs and children openly weeping.
Danielle Shapiro, 14, was among the grief-stricken. She played on the freshman-sophomore tennis team with Kelli.
“She was a person to look up to,” Danielle said of her friend. “She never quit. Everyone loved her. She never would hold a grudge. She will always be in our hearts.”
Parents talked about their fears for their own children in a community they always viewed as safe.
“I can’t tell you how horrifying this is,” said parent Josie Giovannelli. “It’s every parent’s nightmare. The whole community is not only shaken, but overcome by the horror of it.”
But Giovannelli said she remains determined not to have her freshman daughter “paralyzed by fear.”
Contributing: Lauren Fitzpatrick, Jane Michaels, Kara Spak
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