Northbrook police asked for the public’s help Monday finding an Aurora man they said has been charged with first-degree murder in the December strangulation death of a lawyer in a village office building.
Northbrook Police Chief Charles Wernick said authorities are searching for John G. Panaligan, 50, of Aurora, in connection with the Dec. 7 death of Jigar K. Patel.
Wernick said a warrant had been issued five weeks ago for Panaligan’s arrest. When asked why a news conference wasn’t called at the time, Wernick said, “We didn’t have enough to make the case.”
Wernick said authorities believe Panaligan may have left the immediate area.
“He has, to the best of our knowledge fled the area, and (police are) working with our federal partners to put him in custody,” he said. “He got out of the area almost immediately.”
Wernick said that investigators do not believe that Panaligan, a native of the Philippines, has left the country. Panaligan’s last known address was in the 2200 block of Boxford Court in Aurora, according to police.
Wernick said Panaligan was “absolutely” the man seen in security video footage from the day of the killing. In January, police released pictures of the footage showing a man who was wearing a trench coat, surgical mask and hat, and carrying a cane, entering the building at 1363 Shermer Road.
But Wernick said Panaligan is not disabled and does not carry a cane.
“Just the opposite,” he said. It was “just a disguise.”
Panaligan has black hair and brown eyes, stands 5-foot-5-inches tall and weighs about 140 pounds, according to police.
Wernick said Panaligan appeared to have no prior criminal history, and a lawsuit seemed to be the key to Patel’s death.
He said that Panaligan and a family member were party to a long-running lawsuit concerning a Naperville-based home health care business, Vital Wellness Home Health. Wernick said Patel represented the plaintiffs in the suit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court in 2009.
“Mr. Patel was the attorney of record, who was suing the Panaligans and their business … a lawsuit that had gone on for many years,” he said. “And we believe that was part of the motive.”
Wernick refused to say what else led authorities to suspect Panaligan in the killing.
“I’m not going to discuss the evidence,” he said. “But I believe we have a good, solid case.”
Police had previously asked that anyone with information contact the Northbrook Investigations Unit at (847) 664-4181.
The U.S. Marshals Service has offered a $3,000 reward for information leading to Panaligan’s arrest. The agency can be reached at (888) 869-4590.
A woman answering a phone listed as belonging to a family member of Patel’s declined comment on the police announcement.
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