:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/shawmedia/IHUFESVM5JEJNGEBZZ3RWJ4V2U.jpg)
The Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office has charged a 17-year-old DeKalb resident as an adult with three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the shooting death of an 18-year-old Oswego resident last December in the unincorporated Boulder Hill subdivision.
In a statement, the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office said Brian O. Bell Jr. faces additional felony charges of aggravated battery with a firearm, attempted armed robbery with a firearm and aggravated discharge of a firearm in the death of Ashton Laatz about 5:21 p.m. Dec. 22, 2022, in the first block of Circle Drive East.
It is with deep appreciation to the Laatz family that I want to extend a heartfelt thank you for your cooperation, resilience, and strength during the course of this investigation and into the future as the case progresses.
— Kendall County Sheriff Dwight Baird
Bell is in custody at the Kane County Juvenile Justice Center in St. Charles, where his bond has been set at $1 million.
The sheriff’s office said deputies responding to a report of shots being fired the evening of the incident located a car that was involved in a traffic crash in the first of Circle Drive East. Deputies found Laatz inside the car, suffering from a gunshot wound. Laatz was transported to an area hospital where he later died.
Kendall County Sheriff Dwight Baird described the case as “very intertwined from day one.”
Sheriff’s office detectives are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.
“It is with deep appreciation to the Laatz family that I want to extend a heartfelt thank you for your cooperation, resilience, and strength during the course of this investigation and into the future as the case progresses,” Baird said in a news release. “Furthermore, I want to thank the men and women of the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office for their assiduity and perseverance in thoroughly and tirelessly investigating this case. Lastly, I would also like to recognize the citizens of Kendall County for their continued support of law enforcement personnel during the course of this investigation. It truly takes a community, bonded together, to endure these types of situations.”