Lake County Inmate Charged in Murder-for-Hire Scheme Found Dead in Jail Cell

LAKE COUNTY, IL - An inmate from Mundelein who was recently arrested for allegedly hiring someone to kill a witness in a pending sex assault case was found dead Wednesday in a Lake County jail cell, police said.

Jonathan Velazquez, 34, of the 0 to 100 block of Sandhurst Road in Mundelein, was charged in recent weeks with solicitation of murder for hire and solicitation for murder, which are both class X felonies. His bond was set at $1 million.

Authorities began an investigation into Velazquez on June 21 while he was being held at the Lake County Jail on a $350,000 bond on charges of criminal sexual assault after learning Velazquez was trying to hire someone to kill the witness, according to a Lake County Sheriff’s Office press release. The sex assault charges stem from a crime that happened in Mundelein.

During an investigation into the allegations, “Velazquez continued to make steps forward attempting to hire a ‘hitman,’” according to the news release.He made formal arrangements to pay over $1,000 in cash to an individual he believed was going to murder the witness, police said. That “hitman” was actually an informant working with detectives, according to the news release.

He was charged with the solicitation of murder charges on June 30 and moved to the jail medical unit on July 1, which is standard procedure for defendants in high-profile cases and meant to keep them away from the general jail population, according to a Lake County Sheriff’s Office press release.

At around 12:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Velazquez was found unresponsive and alone in his cell with a fabric-type strap wrapped around his neck. Preliminary indication is the strap was used to secure a television to an elevated television stand, according to the press release.

Lake County Corrections Officers and jail medical staff immediately began life-saving measures, including CPR and used an Automated External Defibrillator (AED). The life-saving measures were unsuccessful and Velazquez was pronounced dead following the arrival of paramedics.

The Lake County Major Crime Task Force responded and is conducting an immediate and independent investigation, which is standard protocol for these types of incidents, according to the sheriff’s office.

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