In a case Cook County prosecutors are calling a deadly act of vehicular aggression, a 34-year-old man is charged with first-degree murder after allegedly pursuing and repeatedly ramming a woman’s vehicle and then crashing into another car, killing its driver.
Markell Reeves was arrested this week, more than a year after the multi-vehicle crash that killed a 45-year-old woman in the 6400 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue.
During a court hearing on Wednesday, prosecutors laid out a disturbing chain of events that began as a routine fender bender around 10:22 p.m. on May 25, 2024. Prosecutors say Reeves was driving a red Ford Expedition north on South Shore Drive at 71st Street when he collided with a silver Volkswagen driven by a 28-year-old woman.
Both drivers pulled over to exchange information and waited for police.
When officers didn’t arrive after 10–15 minutes, Reeves and the woman agreed to drive to the nearby Grand Crossing (3rd) District police station at 7040 South Cottage Grove Avenue. She led the way, and Reeves followed close behind, according to prosecutors.
As the woman prepared to turn into the station’s parking lot, Reeves allegedly rear-ended her vehicle, causing it to spin out. The woman tried to flee north on Cottage Grove to get away from him, but prosecutors say Reeves pursued her and struck her a second time just past 68th Street. Police later recovered pieces of his license plate and her broken taillight from that location.
According to prosecutors, the woman continued trying to escape by making several turns, but Reeves kept following closely. As she turned back onto Cottage Grove, surveillance video allegedly captured Reeves speeding up and slamming into her car a third time. That collision pushed the woman’s vehicle off the road and into a pole.
Reeves then lost control of his SUV, veered into oncoming traffic, and crashed head-on into a Chevrolet Equinox carrying two women, prosecutors said. The driver, 45, was pronounced dead at the scene. Her 46-year-old passenger survived but sustained internal injuries that required extensive surgery.
Emergency responders found Reeves lying on the ground next to his SUV. He and the surviving victim were taken to hospitals for treatment.
Prosecutors said DNA collected from the airbag of Reeves’ Ford matched his genetic profile. The woman he allegedly pursued also picked him out of a photo lineup.
Reeves later sent a threatening Facebook message to the woman that included her home address and referenced the original crash, prosecutors claimed. She reported the message to the police.
After his arrest, Reeves reportedly admitted to being behind the wheel of the Ford that night, though he claimed he was merely making a U-turn to return to the station when another car struck him, an account prosecutors say is contradicted by surveillance footage.
Investigators also recovered two phones from Reeves at the time of his arrest, including one containing messages between him and a witness regarding testimony she would give to a grand jury, prosecutors said.
Reeves is charged with first-degree murder, murder, murder during the commission of another forcible felony, two counts of attempted murder, and three counts of aggravated battery.
His prior record includes a 2017 conviction for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and misdemeanor DUI, prosecutors said. Judge Rivanda Doss Beal detained Reeves pending trial.
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