Police locate vehicle in Chicago taken from scene of Sycamore double slaying

SYCAMORE – Police said Thursday they recovered a vehicle that was taken from the rural Sycamore home of two people who were found slain earlier this month.

The car, a white 2010 Chevrolet Impala, belonged to Patricia A. Wilson, 85. Wilson and her son, Robert Wilson, 64, were found dead inside their home at 16058 Old State Road on Aug. 15 by a family member.

The vehicle was found Wednesday in Chicago, legally parked near the Lincoln Park Zoo on Chicago’s north side, DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott said. It did not appear to have been altered or damaged in any way, Scott said.

A tactical unit with the Chicago police had been on the lookout for the vehicle and found it early Wednesday, Scott said. Police kept the vehicle under surveillance for several hours before bringing it back to DeKalb County late in the day, Scott said.

“They watched it, but they determined through their investigation that it had been there quite awhile and no one was returning to it,” Scott said.

Overnight, police went through the vehicle to recover potential evidence, which has been sent to the Illinois State Police Crime Lab, Scott said. Investigators also are parsing through video taken on the public way around the vehicle, Scott said.

“They are spending a lot of time on that aspect,” he said.

Police had been searching for the vehicle since the killings. Police have said there were signs that someone had forced their way into the Wilsons’ home, and an autopsy found that both died after being beaten with a blunt object.

Robert Wilson was last seen in Sycamore the afternoon Sunday, Aug. 14, at the Sycamore Moose Lodge, where he was an active member, Scott has said.

“The fact that we’ve recovered a vehicle does give us a significant boost, and it allows us to focus on other areas of the investigation,” Scott said. “Now that we have the car we can concentrate on other avenues, other leads, as we move forward.”

Police have operated under the assumption that whoever killed the Wilsons had stolen Patricia Wilson’s vehicle, although that’s not a certainty, Scott said.

“The assumption would be someone who was directly involved in the crime or someone who was aware of it [had the car], but there’s no guarantees,” Scott said. “So if there’s something else there, we’d be glad to hear about that.”

The sheriff’s office also announced that the reward for information on the crime has increased to $25,000 as a result of private donations.

Anyone with information they have not already given to police should contact DeKalb County Crime Stoppers at 815-895-3272, or email crimestoppers@dekalbcounty.org.

“It’s a significant amount of money and it’s an important case,” Scott said. “From a humanitarian point of view and a personal point of view I’m hoping [anyone with information] will move forward.”