Residents of Indian Head Park were shocked to learn of the stabbing death of 14-year-old, Kelli O’Laughlin, a freshman at Lyons Township High School. Although much of the details of the case have remained hidden, the police have described the homicide as a violent stabbing.
The Huffington Post reported, “Even before police discussed the incident as a possible burglary gone wrong, area residents suspected that burglary may have played a role in the teen’s death. Earlier in the year, the area played host to a spate of burglaries where a man reportedly used Google Maps street view to identify upscale suburban homes and survey their properties in order to plan his break-ins.”
38-year-old, John Wilson, was arrested after Chicago Police issued a warrant to search and seize property from his apartment located on the 7900 block of South Lafayette Avenue. The Huffington Post reported the warrant was to look for “any and all forensic, latent or patent items of evidentiary value, including fingerprints, bodily fluids and hair. The order also had them on the lookout for cell phones, an iPod, coin currency from India and China, Sacagawea coins and backpacks.
In detailing the charges, Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez said Wilson hailed a cab and hitched a ride to the Orange Line stop at Midway International Airport after killing Kelli O’Laughlin…He paid with various coins stolen from the victim’s home.”
This case brings up questions regarding the rehabilitation of perpetual criminals spending their lives in and out of incarceration. Wilson was on parole after serving eight years of an 11 year sentence for a robbery conviction and spent 17 of the last 20 years in prison.
Wilson’s list of crimes and convictions range from drug possession, drug trafficking, robbery, unlawful vehicular invasion and robbery.
However, with all the added attention being put on the suspect of the case, it’s important to remember the 14-year-old victim who was killed while home alone.
Chief Alonzo released a statement posted on the Indian Head Park website stating, “I would like to say that all our hearts go out to the family of Kelli O’Laughlin. The news of this terrible crime has changed the lives of all the residents of Indian Head Park and throughout the surrounding area.”
To see photos of Wilson’s resident where he slept in a 10 foot by 10 foot room littered with trash, check out nbcchicago.com. There are also videos detailing how police caught the suspected killer.
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