Inset: Dane Koletski (GoFundMe). Background: ATG Truckload in Crestwood, Illinois, where Koletski was killed (WGN/YouTube).
Authorities in Illinois say they have charged a 52-year-old trucker with killing his boss at their workplace and then setting the building on fire in an effort to cover up the crime.
Josif Suclea is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 46-year-old Dane Koletski, the president and CEO of ATG Truckload in the Chicago area, Crestwood police announced Sunday. The investigation began shortly after 4 p.m. March 5 when the police and fire departments responded to a blaze at 13835 S. Kostner Avenue, about 20 miles southwest of Chicago.
Crews quickly extinguished the small fire. Amid the heavy smoke, firefighters found Koletski’s body on the second floor.
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An autopsy by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the death to be a homicide from “injuries to the victim’s neck caused by a sharp or pointed object,” cops said.
Investigators came to the conclusion the fire was set on purpose and “numerous leads” pointed to Suclea as the suspect. Around 5:15 a.m. the next day, cops tracked Suclea to a truck stop in Holland, Michigan, some 145 miles up the Lake Michigan coast. Local police took him into custody. Suclea was extradited back to Illinois on Friday and he went before a judge for a bond hearing on Sunday. He remains in the Cook County Jail.
A motive for the crime has yet to be publicly released.
Koletski was born in Macedonia and had a 13-year-old son, a GoFundMe said. According to its website, Koletski and his family started ATG in 2010 and transports refrigerated goods.
“Dane was a wonderful father and friend, and his memory will always be cherished,” the GoFundMe said.
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