The weekend slaying of a family of four, including two boys ages 7 and 9, in far southwest suburban Romeoville was “not a random incident,” police said Tuesday.
In a video Tuesday, Romeoville police Deputy Chief Chris Burne said detectives have been collecting physical evidence and have been reviewing video that may lead them to whoever killed Alberto Rolon, 38, Zoraida Bartolomei, 32, and their two sons, 7 and 9.
“Our detectives and crime scene investigators have spent the last 36 hours collecting a tremendous amount of physical evidence,” Burne said. “We were able to determine that this was not a random incident, and there was no cause for a shelter-in-place order.”
Burne asked residents in the area to share any information they may have, including surveillance camera footage.
“It is important that we conduct a thorough investigation and we have committed our full resources to that task. The victims deserve that,” Romeoville Mayor John Noak said.
Neighbors were grappling with the deaths of the family — described as a “mom and dad and a couple of kids” who kept to themselves — as police tried to learn who shot the four and killed their three dogs.
The police were called to conduct a well-being check at the home in the 500 block of Concord Avenue Sunday after a member of the family didn’t show up to work or respond to phone calls from relatives throughout the day, according to a statement from the village government that was posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
When they arrived, officers found all four members of the family dead. Three dogs were also found deceased in the house, police said.
Please see below for the 10 AM update to the active police investigation. @Romeoville_PD pic.twitter.com/UumL1EWE9c
— Village of Romeoville (@RomeovilleToday) September 18, 2023
“This is devastating,” Lynn Phillips, who lives one door down from the home, said on Monday. “I’ve been crying on and off all day.”
Although she said she didn’t know the family that well, Phillips said they were always cordial to her.
“It was a mom and dad and a couple of kids. The parents would be outside working the yard, and we’d wave hi and bye, that kind of thing,” Phillips said. “Nothing unusual. We all keep to ourselves.”
Police said they do not believe the shooter is among the victims, and they said the slayings happened sometime between 9 p.m. Saturday and 5 a.m. Sunday.
Police did not say whether they had any leads on a suspect.
The children were students at Robert C. Hill Elementary, Valley View School District 365U, in Romeoville, Supt. Rachel Kinder said in a message to the community.
Counselors, social workers and psychologists will be made available for students who need support, Kinder said.
“We are deeply saddened by this tragedy and will do everything we can to support your child, your family, and the safety of our school community,” Kinder said.
Neighbors said the family just moved into the house a few months ago and largely kept to themselves.
Next-door neighbor Carol Love said she had last spoken with the mother on Friday.
They talked about how one of the children had grown out his hair long and recently cut it to donate for a children’s cancer awareness campaign.
Love said the family was a friendly group who made a concerted effort to be nice neighbors, including making sure their dogs weren’t too loud.
“It’s so sad. They were nice people. They didn’t bother anybody,” Love said on Monday, fighting back tears. “I hope they find out who did it.”
Phillips, who has lived in her Romeoville home for 18 years, said she didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary about the family. She described the block as a quiet area where “nothing happens.”
“There’s nothing going on, we all just stay to ourselves. There’s no wild parties, there’s nothing,” Phillips said. “I had a garage sale last year, and that’s probably the most excitement this neighborhood has had. We just go to work, we come home and take our kids to school.”
Phillips said she was at home for most of the weekend, and didn’t hear any unusual noises coming from next door. She said the slayings have left her shaken.
She and other neighbors said their sense of security has been ruptured since learning of the killings.
Alfredo Rosas, who lives next door to Phillips, said it was a “scary” situation that made him reconsider how he sees the neighborhood, which he also described as being tranquil. He said he saw the family outside every now and then but didn’t know them personally.
Rosas was taken aback by the merciless nature of slayings, noting that not even the dogs were spared.
“It’s a little extreme. I guess they were trying to prove a point or something. I don’t know. It’s already really bad with the kids, especially when you have kids, like I have,” Rosas said. “It’s really bad.”
Cristina Ibarra, who has lived in the neighborhood for three years, said it’s out of the ordinary for police to even patrol the area on the weekends because it’s so quiet.
“It’s sad because it’s your neighborhood and it’s usually quiet, and then this happens,” Ibarra said. “It’s very sad.”
Romeoville is a suburb about 30 miles from Chicago. As of 2021, the village had a population of over 40,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Anyone with information should contact Romeoville police at 815-886-7219.
Editor’s note: This story was updated online to include the corrected first name for the adult male victim as supplied by the Will County coroner’s office.
