Joliet Township man pleads guilty to lower murder charge in 2016 beating death

A Joliet Township man pleaded guilty to a murder charge less serious than the one his older brother was convicted of in 2022 even though prosecutors said he was directly responsible for causing a man’s death in 2016.

On Monday, Amari Morgan, 25, pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Robert Bielec, 62, in 2016 in Joliet Township. Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Alyson Wozniak said Morgan allegedly admitted to police that he struck Bielec with a baseball bat outside of his residence.

However, Morgan claimed Bielec jumped toward him and he believed Bielec was possibly in possession of a firearm, Wozniak said. She said Morgan’s “belief was unreasonable.”

Morgan was sentenced to serve 50% of a 20-year sentence and he was given credit with the roughly eight years he’s spent in jail. He was also given additional time credit for obtaining his GED and completing work assignments while incarcerated.

Morgan’s attorney, Jeff Tomczak, said he expects his client to be released from custody soon as he’s already completed his sentence.

The conclusion of Morgan’s case is contrary to what happened to his brother, Blaique Morgan, 27. Will County Judge Vincent Cornelius found Blaique Morgan accountable for the first-degree murder of Bielec even though he did not deliver the death blow.

Blaique Morgan allegedly grabbed Bielec while Amari Morgan struck the man with a baseball bat, according to prosecutors. At a sentencing hearing last year, Blaique Morgan claimed he did not grab or touch Bielec at all during the incident.

Amari and Blaique Morgan were next-door neighbors of Bielec for many years, prosecutors said. The “amicable relationship” between the neighbors had deteriorated, however.

After Will County sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene of Bielec’s homicide, they found notes in the area that said, “You reap what you sow.”

Blaique Morgan was sentenced by Cornelius to serve 100% of a 27-year prison sentence. He was credited for his time in jail and he is expected to be paroled in 2043, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Blaique Morgan has filed an appeal in his case, court records show.

While the Morgan brothers were locked up in jail in 2017, Joliet police officers had discovered their parents, Patrick Morgan, 49, and Angel Morgan, 42, were both dead from an apparent murder-suicide

Judge Dave Carlson had allowed the brothers time outside of jail to attend their parents funeral.