A Chicago man lured his estranged wife across the country with the prospect of reuniting her with their 5-year-old daughter, only to murder the woman when she arrived, prosecutors said Tuesday, adding that detectives found store surveillance video of Ankur Patel making stabbing and slicing motions with the knife he used to kill the woman before he bought it.
Patel, 31, and the woman, whose name has not been released, were married but separated and had a 5-year-old daughter who is living with Patel’s parents in India, Assistant State’s Attorney Mike Pekara said in a detention filing. The woman left Patel in May and began dating another man, who had previously worked with both Patel and the victim.
Under pressure from family members, the woman tried to reconcile with Patel in July and briefly moved back in with him in Wisconsin. But she moved out shortly thereafter, allowing their daughter to remain with Patel. According to prosecutors, Patel proceeded to make threats over the phone to kill both the woman and the man she started dating after their breakup. He also stopped allowing the woman to speak with their daughter.
About two weeks ago, Patel moved in with relatives in Chicago and sent the girl to live with his parents in India without telling his estranged wife, Pekara said. Patel had also been given a key to a friend’s apartment in the 4800 block of North Avers Avenue, where he kept some of his belongings, according to Pekara.
On August 7, Patel contacted the woman, who had moved to Louisiana with the man she had been seeing, and invited her to come to Chicago to get their daughter, Pekara said. Unaware that Patel had sent the girl to India, the woman and her new boyfriend drove to Chicago to get the child.
At about 4:30 p.m. the next day, Patel went to a store near the Avers apartment where surveillance cameras captured him purchasing a small folding knife that prosecutors say he later used to kill his wife. According to Pekara, the video shows Patel making stabbing and slicing motions with the knife before completing the purchase. Patel then went to the Avers apartment and waited for the woman to arrive, said Pekara.
Surveillance video captured the woman approaching the garden unit and Patel briefly exiting the apartment to show her inside, where they argued about his desire to reunite, Pekara alleged. Patel allegedly recorded portions of the argument on his phone, but no physical violence was seen. At some point afterward, Pekara said, Patel brandished the knife and stabbed the woman in the neck. An autopsy later found that she had also suffered multiple defensive wounds, including a deep laceration to her left arm.
Patel allegedly removed his blood-soaked pants and left them inside the apartment near the woman’s body. Surveillance video captured him leaving the scene at about 7:05 p.m.
Meanwhile, the new boyfriend had remained outside the building and repeatedly messaged the woman, but she did not respond. At about 7:30 p.m., he called 911 and told responding officers that he was concerned because he could not reach the woman and detailed the circumstances that had brought them to Chicago, Pekara explained.
CPD tried to contact the woman and Patel by phone but could not reach either of them. Because the new boyfriend did not know which apartment the woman had entered, officers ultimately left the scene.
Later that night, several of Patel’s friends became concerned because he was supposed to meet them for dinner but never arrived. When they went to the Avers apartment looking for him, they found the woman lying near a washing machine and called 911.
Prosecutors said Patel fled toward O’Hare International Airport immediately after leaving the apartment. He ordered an Uber and tried to buy a plane ticket to India, but the ticket counter was closed. He took another Uber to a nearby Target, where surveillance video captured him using his debit card to buy new shoes and clothing before checking into a nearby motel. While at the motel, prosecutors said, Patel disposed of the knife, which police later recovered.
The following morning, Patel returned to O’Hare and successfully purchased a ticket to India. But CPD had already alerted federal authorities that he might try to flee the country. The Department of Homeland Security notified CPD of his ticket purchase and cops arrested Patel at the airport, Pekara said.
During an interview, Patel claimed he did not plan to kill the woman but “finished her” when she told him she would stay with her new boyfriend, Pekara said.
Judge D’Anthony Thedford ordered Patel detained pending trial.
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