Romeoville police say killings of 2 parents, 2 children ‘not random’

Editor’s note: An update on this story is available here.

The Will-Grundy Major Crimes Task Force has been called to assist Romeoville police in the investigation of the killings of two parents and their two sons that is considered “not random.”

In a statement Tuesday, Romeoville Deputy Police Chief Chris Burne said detectives and crime scene investigators have spent the “last 36 hours collecting a tremendous amount of physical evidence” in their investigation of the slayings of Alberto Rolon, 38, Zoraida Bartolomei, 32, and two boys, ages 7 and 9.

All four victims – including three dogs – were shot and killed at their residence in the 500 block of Concord Avenue.

“We were able to determine that this was not a random incident and there was no cause for a shelter-in-place order,” Burne said.

The Will-Grundy Major Crimes Task Force will assist Romeoville police in “gathering evidence and reviewing video,” Burne said.

The task force was created in 2009 and it is composed of police agencies in Will and Grundy counties, according to Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s office. The task force is modeled after the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force, which assisted the Tinley Park Police Department in the investigation of the Lane Bryant massacre in 2008.

“We will continue to exhaust every possible resource available and we will not rest until those responsible for this tragedy are brought to justice,” Burne said.

Police discovered the deaths of the Romeoville family about 8:43 p.m. Sunday. Officers were asked to conduct a well-being check on a residence in the 500 block of Concord Avenue, Burne said.

“A member of the family did not show up for work at 6 a.m. on the morning of Sunday, Sept. 17, and did not respond to phone calls throughout the day, resulting in family members becoming concerned,” Burne said.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found Rolon, Bartolomei and their two sons dead from gunshot wounds.

Rolon and Bartolomei previously resided in Westmont in DuPage County, according to Will County property records. The previous owners of the Concord Avenue residence signed a warranty deed for the couple April 10.

Rolon worked for Euclid Beverage in North Aurora and Bartolomei worked for Chemi-Flex in Lombard, according to federal bankruptcy filings.

In a statement, Rachel Kinder, superintendent of Valley View School District 365-U, said the two boys were Robert C. Hill Elementary School students who “tragically lost their lives in a senseless act of gun violence at their residence in Romeoville.”

None of the neighbors the Herald-News spoke to Monday said they heard or saw anything, including Carol Love, who lives right next to the family’s house.

“I don’t think anybody in the whole block heard anything,” Love said.

Love said her neighbors next door were “nice people but they always kept to themselves.”