A 16-year-old student at Lyons Township High School and her mother have been identified as the victims in a deadly home invasion and police-involved shooting in unincorporated Lyons Township earlier this week.
Emily Romo LaGrange, IL Obituary news
Prosecutors said Friday that Emily Romo, a La Grange Highlands resident and student at Lyons Township High School’s North Campus, died Thursday night after being suffocated during the violent attack. Her mother, 48, remains hospitalized in serious condition.
Authorities allege that 35-year-old Juan Carlos Perez-Abarca of Orland Park broke into the family’s apartment Monday evening using a ladder to gain access to the second floor. Prosecutors said he was hiding inside the home when the victims returned.
According to court records, Perez-Abarca once had a relationship with Romo’s mother, who had recently ended it. Prosecutors noted that she had attempted to obtain an emergency order of protection against him earlier that day, but it was denied. The order has since been granted.
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office reported that deputies were called to the apartment, located in the 6400 block of Joliet Road near La Grange and Countryside, around 5:30 p.m. Monday for a domestic violence incident.
When deputies arrived, they found Romo’s mother on the ground being held at knifepoint and Romo motionless nearby. Prosecutors said her mother had discovered her with a plastic bag over her head. Moments later, Perez-Abarca allegedly stabbed the woman again in front of deputies. One officer then shot him in the leg, ending the attack.
Both victims and the suspect were rushed to local hospitals. Romo was pronounced dead Thursday evening.
Perez-Abarca, who was discharged from the hospital on Thursday, appeared in a Bridgeview courtroom Friday in a wheelchair. He was charged with attempted murder and home invasion, but prosecutors said those charges are expected to be upgraded to murder. He was ordered held in custody at the Cook County Jail until his next court date on September 5.
During the hearing, prosecutors described the attack as “nothing short of a horrific act of violence.”
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office also released body camera footage from the responding deputy, showing the harrowing moment when officers confronted Perez-Abarca. In the video, Romo’s mother can be heard crying for help as the suspect holds her down with a knife. He then stabs her as deputies intervene, ultimately firing at him. Officials cautioned that the footage may be disturbing to viewers.
The Illinois State Police Public Integrity Task Force is now investigating the officer-involved shooting, while Cook County sheriff’s detectives continue their criminal investigation into the attack.
Perez-Abarca is scheduled to return to court on September 5.
