$10 million bond for Crest Hill man accused of strangling girlfriend

A southwest suburban man was ordered held on a $10 million Thursday on charges that he strangled his girlfriend in Crest Hill Tuesday.

Cesar Garcia, 27, faces a count of first-degree murder for the attack that happened about 9 p.m. in the 1800 block of Marlboro Lane, according to Crest Hill police.

Garcia was still inside their apartment when emergency crews arrived and found his girlfriend, 22-year-old Laura Gonzalez, unresponsive, according to police and the Will County coroner’s office. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

An autopsy Wednesday determined she had been strangled.

Garcia was “incoherent” at the scene and taken to Presence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet.

He was charged with the killing and appeared in court Thursday, where a judge set his bond at $10 million, according to the Will County sheriff’s office. He is due back in court Sept. 23.

He was previously arrested on a domestic battery charge in June, according to the sheriff’s office.