Teen charged with killing 17-year-old Chicago Heights girl

A 17-year-old boy has been charged with killing a 17-year-old girl last week near a home in south suburban Chicago Heights.

The boy, whose name was not released because he is a minor, was arrested Monday and faces one count of first-degree murder following Melanie M. Valencia’s death Feb. 22 in the 1400 block of Schilling Avenue, according to Chicago Heights police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Police responded about 9:25 p.m. to a 911 caller stating she could hear a woman screaming for help in the 1400 block of Schilling Avenue, police said.

Officers found Valencia on the ground near a fence in the back of a home, bleeding from the head and back, authorities said. She died at the scene at 9:44 p.m. An autopsy Thursday found she died of multiple injuries suffered in an assault, and her death was ruled a homicide.

The 17-year-old Chicago Heights boy was arrested about 7 p.m. Monday in the 100 block of East 22nd Street, police announced Tuesday. He was scheduled to appear in court in Markham on Wednesday.