Joliet Teens Being Held Accountable For Arson Killing 3: Police Chief

JOLIET, IL - Police Chief Brian Benton is pleased with the dramatic turn of events surrounding the fatal fire investigation at North Center Street. On Thursday, Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow announced that three Joliet teenagers are being charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder. The June 3 fire engulfed the structure, claiming three lives, Regina Rogers, 28, her 11-month-old daughter Royalty Rogers and Jacquetta Rogers, 29.

Now, three are charged in Will County Circuit Court with six counts of murder, three counts of arson and one count of attempted first-degree murder. Andy Cerros, 17, Manuel A. Escamilla, 18, and Eric J. Raya, 18, are in custody facing a $10 million bond.

"I'm very proud of the efforts of our department to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice," Benton said Thursday afternoon. "It was tragic and a senseless act that resulted in the deaths of three innocent people."

The site of last month's fire that killed three, including a baby.

According to Joliet's police chief, his agency's criminal investigators learned early on in the probe "that this was an intentional act, and they worked diligently to build a case against those responsible."

The suspected arson broke out shortly before 2 a.m. on the city's near west-side, near Jefferson Street. Inside, Joliet firefighters found the bodies of the two women and the baby on the second floor.

The police chief said it's his understanding that a fourth person, who narrowly escaped the flames, may have been the intended target of the crime. The three teens are accused of showing up at the property on North Center Street, shortly before 2 a.m. and then firing a flare gun into the second floor of the dwelling, causing the structure to ignite.

According to court documents filed Thursday, "the defendants, while committing arson, partially damaged a building of Bruce Sikora ... that was the dwelling place of Rakeem Venson."

Joliet's Deputy Fire Chief Greg Blaskey credited the city police department's investigators for building a case against the three teens being suspected of the horrific crime.

"And by charging them, hopefully, it can give the remainder of the family some closure," Blaskey said.

The fire could have also claimed a fourth victim, Blaskey said, if not for the quick actions of the man who escaped, by jumping from a second floor window onto the porch below.

"He suffered no injuries," Blaskey said. "Obviously, it was a very fast moving fire, so he was very lucky to survive."

As for the co-defendants, the two 18-year-olds being charged with multiple counts of murder are familiar names to Will County law enforcement. Raya and Escamilla were both indicted by a Will County grand jury in May on one count of aggravated battery, a Class 3 felony, and two counts of mob action, a Class 4 felony.

According to the indictment, Raya was in the Walmart parking lot in New Lenox when he struck Corey Ryan. The subsequent mob action charge alleges that Escamilla, Raya and three juveniles with them began striking Ryan. Court records state that the mob action crime occurred on June 3, which was also the same date as the early morning blaze that killed the three people on North Center Street.

Then, five days after the fatal fire, Escamilla was charged with two other felonies, illegal possession of a firearm and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Back on May, 22, Escamilla had a black Sentinel .22 caliber revolver in his possession, court records reflect. The complaint states that the teenager "is not eligible to apply for a Firearm Owner's Identification Card because he has been adjudicated a delinquent minor ... for an offense that if committed by an adult would be a felony ... aggravated unlawful use of a weapon."

Eric J. Raya, 18

Manuel A. Escamilla, 18