Knife Put Into Uncle's Skull In Joliet's College Park: Glasgow

JOLIET — The Will County State's Attorney's Office of Jim Glasgow is going back on the offensive, revealing gruesome details surrounding Joliet's College Park subdivision murder of 53-year-old Timothy Bokholdt. The victim's body was put into a green garbage can and driven in his own pickup truck to the Woodlawn Cemetery, less than two miles away, in November 2021, according to new court filings.

Glasgow's fellow prosecutors just filed their petition to deny pretrial release for first-degree murder defendant Anthony "Tony" Harames, whose uncle was the murder victim. Besides murder, Harames faces the felony crime of concealment of a homicide.

"Timothy's body was located in Woodlawn Cemetery. Officers located Timothy's body along with a note claiming it was self-defense," Tuesday's court filing revealed.

When Joliet police searched the murder victim's house off Houbolt Road at 906 Natoma Court, officers found the knife "the defendant described as using to stab Timothy," prosecutors outlined.

The murder victim's daughter, Brittney Kringle, told Joliet police she had not seen or heard from Bokholdt for weeks, and he was not answering her phone calls, which she found unusual.

One of Bokholdt's neighbors told Joliet police he had not seen Bokholdt for at least 22 days, but the neighbor remembered seeing Harames load a green garbage can into the back of Bokholdt's pickup truck.

Autopsy Finds 51 Stab Wounds For Joliet Homicide Victim

Joliet police, as a direct result of Harames' cooperation, discovered Bokholdt's body on the property inside Woodlawn Cemetery in December 2021. The Will County Coroner's autopsy revealed that Bokholdt suffered 51 stab wounds, including 30 stab wounds to his head, neck, chest and right upper body.

Bokholdt had 21 incised wounds to his head and both sides of his upper extremities. Two stab wounds penetrated Bokholdt's skull, prosecutors informed Will County Judge Sarah Jones.

Motive For Murder Revealed By Prosecutors

On Dec. 8, 2021, Joliet police had no idea that Bokholdt was already a murder victim. That night, dozens of Joliet police cars and SWAT team officers blanketed the College Park subdivision after learning Harames barricaded himself inside his uncle's house, and he was not willing to surrender, yet.

Harames' girlfriend, who has a child with Harames, told the police she lives down the street and walked over to 906 Natoma seeking a ride from her boyfriend. She also knew the house belonged to Bokholdt, whose nephew Harames had been living there the past few weeks.

When the girlfriend knocked on the door on Dec. 8, 2021, Harames took a long time to answer the door, and she finally pushed her way inside because it was cold outside. Harames began arguing with her and he was pacing. Harames grabbed his girlfriend's arm and shoved her, causing her to stumble. Harames then shut the door to the garage and blocked it, court filings reflect.

The girlfriend asked about the whereabouts of Harames' uncle, who had been missing since mid-November of that year. When she told Harames she was leaving, Harames pushed her in the back and tried to block the front door, but she managed to get past him, escape and call the police.

Harames began kicking the front door from the inside and yelling derogatory names at his girlfriend and once officers arrived, Harames barricaded himself inside his uncle's house, and he was dressed in a vest with several pockets and yelling out the front door for the Joliet police to shoot him, prosecutors noted.

The SWAT team for Joliet police responded, and after several hours of standoff, Harames came out and surrendered. Joliet police said he had two black BB guns in his possession; he was charged with domestic battery and taken to St. Joe's for a mental health evaluation.

Killer Confesses To His Uncle's Death: Prosecutors

When speaking with Joliet police detectives, Harames confessed to taking his uncle's life, prosecutors revealed this week.

"The defendant admitted to stabbing his uncle with a knife in the garage at 906 Natoma. He stated he went to the garage to confront Timothy about poisoning the defendant. According to the defendant, Timothy pushed the defendant and maced him and told him to leave," court filings show. "Defendant indicated he pulled out his knife at that time and went berserk on Timothy.

"Defendant stated he put Timothy's dead body in a garbage can and dumped it in Woodlawn Cemetery. Defendant showed officers where Timothy's body was located in Woodlawn Cemetery."

Will County Judge Sarah Jones will conduct the pretrial detention hearing for Harames on July 1 in Courtroom 501. Judge Jones will decide whether Harames must remain in the jail awaiting his eventual trial, or whether he can go home and roam around the community under the SAFE-T-Act.

Harames is represented by private counsel, downtown Joliet criminal defense attorney Eric Mitchell of Mitchell Legal Solutions on North Ottawa Street.

Last week's Joliet Patch Exclusive:

Uncle's Body At Joliet Cemetery: Anthony Harames Wants Out Of Jail