A 24-year-old man from Illinois has been arrested in connection with the death of a 61-year-old woman.

On August 30, Reese Miller was found by the police driving the blue Toyota Scion that belonged to the victim almost three hours after she was located outside her residence in Harwood Heights at approximately 6:30 am. The 61-year-old woman, identified as Ma L. Operio, had a zip-tie tightly wrapped around her neck.

First responders quickly removed the zip-tie, began CPR, and rushed Ms. Operio to a local hospital. Due to the critical nature of her injuries, Ms. Operio was put on life support. On September 3, her family made the difficult decision to halt life support measures, and she succumbed to her injuries.

In the course of the investigation, a note from Miller was found inside the stolen vehicle. The note read, “I am deeply sorry for hurting anyone at the moment; it seemed to be the only choice.”

Furthering their investigation, police received information from a neighbor who recounted witnessing a man, believed to be Miller, choking a woman early that morning. After the alleged assault, the same man was seen driving off in the victim’s car. In support of these claims, footage from a doorbell camera during the investigation displayed an individual bearing a resemblance to Miller and wearing similar attire to what he had on at the time of his arrest. When confronted with this evidence, Miller verified that he was the person captured in the video. He also recognized ownership of a knife that was discovered in the stolen vehicle and added that he had repositioned Ms. Operio’s body to prevent running over her.

Upon being advised of his rights, Miller made a full confession to the police. He has since been charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated vehicular hijacking. Presently, he is being held in Cook County Jail and will appear in court on September 22. Miller’s legal counsel has shared that their client has been previously diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.