Aaron Mejia | Homicide Watch Chicago

Family: 'Loving mother' with outgoing personality stabbed to death by boyfriend

Michael Lansu — Mon, 25 Nov 2013 17:48:51 -0600

Rosa Perez / Family Photo

BY SAFIYA MERCHANT
Homicide Watch Chicago

Rosa Maria Perez was a loving mother who took her daughter to and from school, family said.

That all changed last Thursday, when Perez was found stabbed to death inside her home in the 2200 block of South Sacramento Avenue, authorities said.

Prosecutors claim Perez’ boyfriend, Aaron Mejia, stabbed her to death last Wednesday and hid her body in a closet. Police discovered the body about 10 a.m. Thursday at the apartment they shared on Sacramento Avenue, authorities said.

Perez, 27, did not live with her 12-year-old daughter, but family members said the two were “very close” and Perez would take the girl to and from Our Lady of Tepeyac School.

The girl was “devastated” when she learned of her mother’s death, family said. She was crying and saying, “You’re lying. Mom is going to pick me up [from school].”

Perez’ family gathered at the Little Village neighborhood school to share their memories.

Perez grew up in Chicago and attended Farragut Career Academy, where she played volleyball, her mother, Juanita Guerrero said. She was currently working as an assistant at a West Side clinic.

She enjoyed bowling, roller skating and going to dinner with her friends -- especially going out for tacos, Guerrero said.

“She was very happy,” Guerrero said. “She got along with a lot of people. Very outgoing.”

Her family said Perez, who often wore jeans and heels, could walk into a room and fit in with any crowd -- often giving out hugs and telling jokes.

“She always had a smile on her face, she was always happy,” said Perez’ aunt, Maria Guerrero.

Perez began dating Mejia about three years ago, her family said. Prosecutors claim Mejia, 19, admitted to a family member that he killed Perez and told authorities where to find the knife. On Monday, Judge Donald Panarese ordered him held on $1.5 million bond.

The Perez family wrote the following poem in her honor:

Poem For Rosa Perez

“Rosa was young vibrant, full of life – words can not explain what he took from us. It breaks my heart to imagine life without her. This is senseless and unimaginable for us. The worst part of it all is that this is just the beginning for us. Life is never going to be the same without her. He took our heart. Please pray 4 her. May she rest in peace.”

In addition to her daughter, Perez is survived by three brothers, a sister and an extended family.

Funeral arrangements are pending, and family members are asking anybody who wants to help with the cost to send money to Chase Bank account number 527650696 with routing number 071000013.

-- Contributing: Michael Lansu, Homicide Watch Chicago Editor

WEEK IN REVIEW: Four shot, one stabbed to death throughout city

Michael Lansu — Mon, 25 Nov 2013 08:43:51 -0600

BY MICHAEL LANSU
Homicide Watch Chicago Editor

Five people were killed by violence throughout the city last week.

Two men have been charged with murder in separate killings -- an alleged North Side drug deal and a Southwest Side domestic incident.

The most recent murder happened when Tyshon Anderson was shot to death in the first-floor hallway of a building in the 2700 block of East 80th Street about 11:05 p.m. Saturday, authorities said.

Anderson, 18, of who lived on the block, was rushed to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he died less than an hour later, authorities said.

In the South Deering neighborhood, Jeffery Whiters was shot to death on a sidewalk in the 2400 block of East 100th Street about 12:15 a.m. Saturday, authorities said.

Whiters, 34, of the 1200 block of West 74th Place, was shot in the right thigh and "left side of the body," authorities said. He died at 2:47 a.m. Saturday at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

In the Little Village neighborhood, Rosa Maria Perez, 27, was found stabbed to death inside her apartment in the 2200 block of South Sacramento Avenue about 10 a.m. Thursday, authorities said.

Aaron Mejia, 19, has been charged with first-degree murder for Perez' death, authorities said. Perez' family said the pair had been dating for about three years and lived together in the home.

In the Lincoln Square neighborhood, Irbinzon Gonzalez was fatally shot about 7:30 p.m. Monday in a McDonald's parking lot in the 4800 block of North Lincoln Avenue, authorities said.

Gonzalez, 25, of the 2600 block of West Winnemac Avenue, was shot in the head inside a BMW and was dead on the scene, authorities said.

Cordero H. Sims, 26, of Naperville, was charged with murder in Gonzalez' death. Prosecutors said Sims shot Gonzalez during a drug deal.

Additionally, Brandon Torres died Monday night after he was shot in the head early Sunday in the 1600 block of West 44th Street, authorities said. Torres, 21, of the 4700 block of South Halsted Street, was sitting inside a vehicle when he was shot about 2:10 p.m. Sunday.

Aaron Mejia charged in stabbing death of Rosa Perez

Michael Lansu — Sun, 24 Nov 2013 16:00:59 -0600

Aaron Mejia / Photo from Chicago Police

Aaron Mejia has been charged with allegedly stabbing Rosa Maria Perez to death during an argument at their Little Village home.

Mejia, 19, of the 2200 block of South Sacramento Avenue, was charged Sunday with one count of first-degree murder, police said.

Mejia and Perez were arguing when the stabbing occurred, police said. Perez family said the pair lived together.

Perez, 27, was found unresponsive in the home about 10 a.m. Thursday and was declared dead on the scene, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. An autopsy determined she died of multiple stab wounds.

Rosa Perez / Family Photo

Perez' family said the couple had been dating for about three years.

Perez grew up in Chicago and had a 12-year-old daughter, her family said. She was currently working at a West Side clinic.

"She was very happy," her mother Juanita Guerrero said. "She got along with a lot of people. She was very outgoing."

Mejia initially fled, but was arrested Saturday, police said. He is expected to appear for a bond hearing Monday afternoon at the Leighton Courthouse in the 2600 block of South California Avenue.

-- Michael Lansu, Homicide Watch Chicago Editor