Man Charged Months After Mom, Sister Found Buried In Lyons Backyard

La Grange IL

08 April, 2022

9:57 AM

Description

LYONS, IL – Eight months after their mother and sister were found buried in the backyard of their Lyons house, two brothers have been taken into custody, Lyons police said Thursday. The bodies of the mother, Jean Lelko, and the sister, Jennifer Lelko, were discovered last August, police said. Michael Lelko, 47, is being charged with two counts of concealment of death, a felony. And his brother, John Lelko, 42, is in custody, with charges pending, police said. In a news release, Lyons Police Chief Thomas Herion said federal agents told him that both brothers also are facing charges of theft of Social Security benefits, paid in the name of the mother after her death. "This has been a very unusual and difficult case because the bodies have been buried for so many years," Herion said in the release. "The autopsy was only able to confirm the identities of the two individuals, the mother and the sister, but not any evidence for the cause of death." The brothers told police that they buried their mother and sister in the backyard of their home in the 3900 block of Center Avenue, according to the release. They were taken into custody in August, pending the conclusion of the investigation. Police said the brothers told police in August that their sister had pushed the mother, who was in her late 70s, down the stairs of the house in 2015, causing a "head contusion" that resulted in her death. The brothers also said the sister fell ill and died in 2019, police said. No record of either death exists with the state, according to the news release. Herion said the investigation is focused on finding the cause of death. The tri-level home has been boarded up, police said. The two brothers were briefly taken into custody in August but released as an investigation continued.