Trucking Company CEO Screamed, Asked 'Why' As Throat Was Slashed: Prosecutors

CRESTWOOD, IL — An employee accused of a slashing his boss’s throat at a Crestwood trucking company had made numerous threats to kill him in the presence of others in the days leading up to the CEO’s brutal death, prosecutors said.

Josif Suclea, 53, appeared Sunday at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse on charges of first degree murder. An arson investigation is also said to be underway by the state fire marshal.

A Cook County assistant state’s attorney said that Dane Koteski, 47 had suffered business setbacks in the days leading up to his death on March 5. Koteski owned ATG Truckload at 13835 S. Kostner Ave. in Crestwood.

Koteski leased several refrigeration trucks from Compass Truck Rental when he announced on Feb. 28 that he would be closing the trucking company. Over the next few days, the prosecutor said Suclea threatened to kill Koteski on multiple occasions in front of numerous employees.

On March 3, prosecutors say Koteski entered ATG and threatened to kill the owner and his family in front of other employees.

A few days later, on March 5, Koteski was captured on security video entering ATG just after 2:30 p.m. Suclea appeared on video entering the business a few minutes after his boss, according to officials. Koteski was seen on the phone as Suclea followed his boss as he moved around the building before entering the back office, the prosecutor said.

There was no security camera in the back room, but the prosecutor said Suclea was seen spitting into a garbage can before entering the back room.

Seconds later, security video, which also had audio, recorded Koteski screaming and asking why, the prosecutor said. Suclea next appeared on camera with blood on his shoes and hand, leaving the office area, court documents said.

According to the prosecutor, Suchlea looked directly into the security camera as he pulled down the smoke detector. As the fire alarm began to ring, the prosecutor said Suclea appeared, fleeing the scene in a Compass truck. Just ten minutes lapsed between the time Suclea entered and left the building, leaving Koteski dying on the floor, the prosecutor said.

An hour after Suclea drove out of ATG’s parking lot, the main office area was seen on video filling with smoke. An ATG employee arrive at the building around 4 p.m. March 5 to collect a forklift as payment for Koteski's debt. When the employee called Koteski’s name and received no answer, he walked around the building when he heard the fire alarm and smelled smoke, prosecutors said. The employee called 911.

Crestwood police and firefighters entered the building, where a burning binder was found on the second floor. This was the same office where the trucking company owner was found lying in a pool of blood, near where the small fire was found.

Officers observed Koteski lying on his back, with a deep laceration to his jugular vein. He was taken to a hospital, where he succumbed to his wound. The prosecutor said Koteski’s cell phone was found in the trash bin. A bloody fingerprint was found on the phone and was submitted to the Illinois State Crime Lab. Spit from the garage can was also collected and submitted for DNA testing.

The Cook County Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death by force with a sharp object. The autopsy report noted a cut to the trucking company owner’s right side of his neck measuring three inches long. The death was ruled a homicide.

Suclea’s truck was tracked to Holland, Mich., where he was arrested at a truck stop early the next morning, the prosecutor said. In Michigan, officers there were said to find Suclea in possession of a large folding knife.

On Friday, Suclea was extradited from Michigan to Crestwood. Investigators searched Suclea’s phone, which the prosecutor said had connected to ATG Truckload’s Wi-Fi on March 5 at the time of the purported murder at 2:39 p.m. and disconnected when Suclea is said to have fled the scene in the truck at 2:51 p.m.

Luminol testing of Suclea’s truck indicated blood on the steering wheel, and shoe prints on the driver’s side floorboards, court documents said. The smoke detector and folding knife, the suspected murder weapon, were also sent to the Illinois State Crime Lab.

Seven employees and acquaintances also identified Suclea from surveillance video stills and driving off in a Freightliner truck. Another witness described talking to Koteski when his throat was being slit, and said they heard scuffling and muffling before Koteski’s phone went dead, the prosecutor said.

Employees also recounted threats Suclea allegedly made to Koteski in front of them, that he would kill the trucking company owner and his family, as well as kill Koteski with a knife, the prosecutor said.

Suclea was ordered detained in Cook County Jail while his case is pending. His next court appearance is March 18 in Bridgeview.