Brother: Harvard woman killed a few weeks after breakup with man shot by police

Elizabeth Alvarado-Garcia, who was allegedly stabbed to death by a man later shot and killed by police, was a mother of two young boys and had been in a volatile relationship with her accused killer until a few weeks ago, her family said.

“He was very jealous,” Alvarado-Garcia’s brother, Noé Mercado, said of Daniel Alvarado-Aguilar. “Any little thing would set him off.”

Harvard police were called at 11:26 p.m. June 3 to the 700 block of Dewey Street for a domestic disturbance. Police said officers arriving in response to the call found the man armed with a knife on top of a woman.

Police commanded the man, later identified as Alvarado-Aguilar, 33, to drop the knife, which he refused to do. An officer discharged a firearm, striking and killing the man, according to a police news release.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Alvarado-Garcia, 24, of Harvard, was pronounced dead en route to Mercyhealth Hospital and Medical Center-Harvard, the McHenry County coroner said.

I’m going to make sure Angel knows how beautiful his mom was.”

—  Elizabeth Alvarado-Garcia's brother, Noé Mercado

Mercado said Alvarado-Garcia met Alvarado-Aguilar almost two years ago, when Mercado began renting a room to Alvarado-Aguilar.

Speaking to a reporter in Spanish, Mercado’s eyes welled with tears as he described his sister and her boys, Jayden, 4, and Angel, 14 months.

Mercado said Alvarado-Garcia was a good mom who loved her boys.

“She always dressed Angel in clean, nice clothes and made sure he was feeling and looking his best,” Mercado said.

His younger sister would also look after him, Mercado said, often asking whether he’d eaten. If he hadn’t, she would prepare him a plate of food.

“We were close,” Mercado said. “I’m glad for that.”

Gaby Gonzalez worked with Alvarado-Garcia for a few months at the pallet company her father-in-law, Victor Gonzalez, owns.

“She always seemed like a happy person. She was always happy, nice, quiet. She was always here making jokes,” Gonzalez said.

Mercado said the two met, began dating and later moved in together, but that they often fought.

Later, Alvarado-Aguilar was asked to move out because they weren’t getting along, Mercado said, adding that after some months, the couple made up and moved in together again.

Then, three weeks ago they broke up, and Alvarado-Aguilar again was asked to move out, Mercado said. Alvarado-Aguilar threatened Alvarado-Garcia, saying that he would kill her and then himself if they didn’t reconcile, Mercado said.

Harvard Police Chief Tyson Bauman said his office had not been called for previous domestic incidents at the home. As Alvarado-Aguilar was killed by an officer, the investigation is being handled by the McHenry County Major Investigation Assistance Team.

The older boy, Jayden, currently is in Mexico with his grandmother, Mercado said. He is in the process of adopting Angel.

Mercado said the main message about this tragic incident is that his sister was a good woman who didn’t deserve to be killed.

“I’m going to make sure Angel knows how beautiful his mom was,” Mercado said.

The community in Harvard is helping the family, donating to a GoFundMe, Funeral Expenses for Elizabeth Alvarado, and directly to the funeral home in Harvard, Gonzalez said.

“The GoFundMe has been shared over and over on our community Facebook pages. Some of the pages are usually used for trash talking, but everything has been … people sharing and expressing their condolences,” Gonzalez said.

The Saunders & McFarlin Funeral Home is handling the arrangements. A funeral service is set for 11 a.m. Tuesday at the funeral home, 107 W. Sumner St., Harvard.

Yadira Sanchez Olson is a freelance reporter for the Northwest Herald.