A young man, and his teenaged girlfriend, planned and carried out a scheme to murder another young woman that was carrying his unwanted child, as reported by the Chicago Tribune.
Prosecutors stated that the man, D.M., 20, and his girlfriend, S.T., 19, used the song, “I Hate You” as a prearranged signal to attack and murder R.N., 18.
D.M. and S.T. had a long relationship and worked together in a fast food restaurant.
Unbeknownst to R.N. was that while she was on a date with D.M., S.T. was allegedly hiding in his car’s trunk. After R.N. and D.M. finished their dinner out, they returned to the car.
D.M. and S.T. allegedly beat and strangled R.N. to death, dumped her in a forest preserve in Calumet City and then went out to a nightclub.
Cook County Judge Darron Bowden, in Markham Branch Court, ordered D.M. to be held without bail and S.T. held in lieu of $3 million bail.
R.N. was found partially clothed, laid out near some bushes, at the Cook County forest preserve between Freeland Avenue and Warren City.
R.N.’s family stated that she was nine months pregnant – the family identified D.M. as both the baby’s father and R.N.’s boyfriend – and their baby was due to be delivered early this May.
Assistant State Attorney Lynnette Cusack said that the motive for the murder was due to the fact that D.M. did not want to be a father.
Tom Dart, a Cook County Sheriff, said in a news conference, “This was very cold blooded. Very calculated. Very, very tragic.” He stated there was tension between the three young adults, but that R.N. held fast to the notion that D.M. would eventually stand by her, and, his child.
S.N.’s brother said that his sister took a shower and dressed before leaving a note for her family to go out with D.M. at approximately 10:30 p.m.
Cusack said that S.N. met D.M. at an Applebee’s restaurant in Crestwood. From the restaurant, S.N. telephoned her family to say that she was with D.M.
Dart said that while the two dined, S.T. waited in the trunk of D.M.’s car as planned.
Once S.N. was in D.M.’s car, he began to play the song “I Hate You” over and over again. At one point, when he turned up the volume, S.T. heard the signal to crawl from the trunk and strangle S.N.
S.T. used the cord from her cell phone to strangle S.N., with D.M. repeatedly beating her – while driving to the forest preserve. S.N. tried to fight off their attempts while unable to escape from the locked car.
Dart said when the three reached the preserve, D.M. carried S.N. from the car – and she was still alive. But once they reached their destination S.T. strangled and punched S.N. until she died.
After killing her, the two left her body in the preserve and headed to a nightclub.
The next morning S.N.’s mother reported her daughter missing to the Alsip police. A man walking his dog a few hours later discovered her body in the preserve.
S.N.’s death was ruled a homicide – death by strangulation – by the Cook County medical examiner.
The two were soon arrested.
In court, Cusack said that S.T. admitted to detectives what had occurred. M.N. denied being with S.T. at the restaurant but witnesses at the restaurant confirmed that they saw the two there together.
S.T. lives with her mother in Chicago and is in her senior year at Sullivan High School. M.N. is on probation for a
theft conviction, had a probation violation for a charge of cruelty to children out of Georgia and attended high school through the 10
th grade.
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