Chicago Man Charged For Nearly Decapitating Co-Worker And Dumping Body In Car Trunk

Workers at Tapias Auto Repair in Chicago, Illinois reported that one of their co-workers was covered in blood and was behaving strangely. Cook County police check in on 21-year-old Martin Molina on Wednesday, April 14. They found the body of his 42-year-old co-worker Felipe Villalobos-Calderon in the trunk of the younger man’s Cadillac. It is believed that the suspect attacked the victim with a machete and stashed his body in the trunk.

Around 10:30 a.m. local time, Molina walked into the auto-repair shop where both men worked. His victim was reportedly alone in the shop working on his own Toyota RAV4 SUV, Chicago Tribune, reported. The surveillance cameras in the shop were offline as the Villalobos-Calderon had unplugged them to use the outlet. However, the audio surveillance was still on when the incident took place.

The recording clearly caught the victim speaking in Spanish with his attacker. He can be heard asking the younger man to “stop messing around”. He then asks him to calm down before panicking and saying that he will leave. These words are followed by silence and loud thuds.

Chicago Sun-Times reported that another co-worker arrived at the shop shortly after the incident. He did not see the victim but found Molina covered in blood. He jokingly asked if the co-worker has killed somebody. The suspect told the witness that he had been in a fight. He also asked the co-worker to help him bring his car into the garage.

The co-worker agreed but went to his own car and drove off. He called Molina’s father and then 911 to report the alleged fight.

Another co-worker also walked into the auto-shop sometime later. He saw blood on Molina and in the shop. The accused told this witness that he had injured himself. The witness found it strange when the co-worker refused medical assistance and folded cardboard into his trunk.

Molina reportedly drove away from the shop but was convinced by his father to return to the shop. When his father asked him about Villalobos-Calderon, he pointed to the car. Police ended up finding the victim’s body in the trunk along with a shovel. A large machete and a knife were found near the scene as well. The victim has several deep sharp-force injuries including one to his neck that left his body nearly decapitated.

On Friday, April 16, Molina appeared in court. The court heard that the accused had mental health issues. Any motive behind the murder remains unknown. The judge charged the accused with first-degree murder. He will reappear in court on May 6. Till then he is held without bond at Cook County Jail.