
A Grayslake man was charged this week in connection with a hit-and-run that left a father of three kids dead in Round Lake Beach over a year ago.
A 911 call was placed in the early morning hours on February 20, 2021, to check on the well-being of a person found lying in a ditch line on Route 83 north of Fox Chase Drive in Round Lake Beach, according to Round Lake Beach Deputy Police Chief Wayne Wilde Jr.
The Round Lake Beach Police Department and Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District responded to the call around 6:34 a.m.
Officers arrived and located an unresponsive male, later identified as Brian Mach, 41, of Johnsburg, on the west side of the roadway with several pieces of vehicle debris around him, Wilde said.
Paramedics from Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District responded and pronounced Mach dead at the scene a short time later.
An autopsy conducted on Mach showed he died as a result of multiple blunt force injuries, according to Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek.
The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) was called to assist the Round Lake Beach Police Department with the investigation.
Police said a black 2011-2014 Ford Explorer, similar to the image provided above, struck the man and fled the scene.
Wilde said days after the crash that police had located the suspect vehicle and seized it for evidence.
On Friday, police announced an arrest warrant had been issued for Juan Luis Fernandez-Chacon, 36, of the 300 block of Woodland Drive in Grayslake.
Fernandez-Chacon was charged on Tuesday with leaving the scene of an accident involving death, court records show.
Wilde said that Fernandez-Chacon was not in custody as of Friday morning but he was expected to turn himself in.
Fernandez-Chacon will be held on a $200,000 bond and will be taken to bond court.
An online fundraiser in February 2021 gathered nearly $5,000 to cover the funeral expenses for Mach, who was a father of three children.