Man Shows 'No Mercy,' Guns Down 5 Of His Chicago Neighbors For No Apparent Reason
The victims were eating dinner together.
Chicago Police Dept. Krysztof Marek, 66, was charged with the murders of five people. He shot four neighbors as they were eating dinner Saturday and then chased and killed a woman who had witnessed the crime.
“Chicago Police say the first four victims were sitting down for dinner in their condo on the 6700 block of West Irving Park about 5:30 p.m. when Krysztof Marek entered the apartment with a .40 caliber handgun and began shooting,” according to The New York Post. He killed the two women and two men who were inside then chased a woman who witnessed his actions.
Marek lived in the apartment complex for over 24 years and had no previous criminal record. Who is Krysztof Marek?
1. Police found cryptic letters taped to his door.
According to The New York Post, Police found “multiple cryptic letters” in his condo that addressed issues with his neighbors but did not specify what the issues were. “Tomorrow, no mercy without any stupid hesitation,” one of the notes read in Polish, prosecutors said. “Remember who you are. Remember what this piece of s— is doing to you. Enough.” Another note also said “no mercy,” adding, “Remember whatever s— they do to you, you control it yourself, not them. Enough. They have to pay for it.”
2. Neighbors considered him friendly until the last few months.
Marek’s neighbors recalled him as being friendly and never had issues with him. They did, however, state that his demeanor did shift in the past six months, seemingly out of nowhere and then referred to him as “spooky,” and “unstable,” according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
3. He didn’t resist arrest.
“I think you’re looking for me," prosecutors said Marek exclaimed to officers. “I did it.” According to The Chicago Tribune, officers found Marek’s front door open and said they immediately spotted a firearm on his coffee table. Police immediately arrested Marek.
4. The motive is unclear.
According to The Chicago Tribune, “the building condo association was trying to evict Marek for failing to pay both his mortgage and association fees.” Investigators are considering this to be a possible motive for the attack.
5. He filed for bankruptcy in 2017.
According to Heavy, Marek filed for bankruptcy in September 2017 and was over $200,000 in debt. “He owed more than $112,000 for his mortgage and loans, more than $24,000 to the IRS and more than $63,000 to other creditors, mostly credit card companies. Marek did have assets totaling about $115,000,” according to Heavy.
6. He had no previous criminal records.
According to The Sun-Times, Marek lived in his condo for 25 years while also working as a cross-country truck driver. Marek’s public defender said in court that he has three adult children and six grandchildren.
Elizabeth Ward is a writing student finishing her bachelor’s at the University of Louisville. She covers news, entertainment, relationships and everything in between.