An 80-year-old man charged with fatally shooting his neighbor during an argument over the neighbor’s leaf blower use near Antioch has been deemed unfit to stand trial.
Ettore Lacchei, 80, of Antioch, was charged in April with two counts of first-degree murder.
Lake County Judge Paul Novak found Lacchei unfit to stand trial on Tuesday.
Novak ordered Lacchei to undergo in-patient treatment in the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections, court documents show.
Novak said the treatment could last up to a year. Reports will be sent by the treatment provider every 90 days on the status of treatment.
The charges Lacchei is facing stem from a shooting that authorities say occurred around 7:35 p.m. on April 12 in the 40700 block of North Black Oak Avenue in unincorporated Antioch.
Paramedics were already on the scene performing lifesaving measures before sheriff’s deputies arrived, Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said.
The initial 911 call reported that a man was unresponsive on the driveway.
The victim was later identified as William Martys, 59, who lived at the residence.
Martys was transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville where he was pronounced dead, Covelli said.
Covelli said a further investigation revealed Martys sustained a gunshot wound to the head.
Sheriff’s detectives determined Martys’ next-door neighbor, Lacchei, had “various perceived grievances” with Martys, Covelli said.
Martys was using a leaf blower in his yard when he was approached by Lacchei.
Lacchei argued with Martys and Lacchei shot Martys in the head during the argument, Covelli said.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Jeffrey Facklam said during an initial bond hearing that the murder was without “justification or provocation” and appeared to stem from an argument over the use of the leaf blower.
Lacchei told investigators he had not left his house on the day of the murder and had never interacted with Martys.
Witnesses reported seeing Lacchei and Martys involved in an argument at the time the murder occurred, Facklam said.
Witnesses also told investigators that Lacchei was known to carry the firearm while walking up and down the street.
Investigators recovered a single .25 caliber casing at the scene.
Sheriff’s detectives found a gun case in Lacchei’s home during a search warrant and then recovered the .25 caliber firearm believed to have been used in the murder near his property line.
A box of .25 caliber ammunition was also found in Lacchei’s yard, Facklam said.
Lacchei was arrested without incident at his home following the search warrant.
Facklam said during a bond hearing that Lacchei has hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash in his possession and asked the court to deny bond.
Lacchei planned on closing on the sale of his home and then moving to Italy before the murder, Facklam said, adding that the man has an Italian passport and a United States passport.
Lake County Judge Theodore Potkonjak granted prosecutors’ petition for denial of bail after finding Lacchei to be a potential flight risk.
A grand jury in May returned an indictment charging Lacchei with three counts of first-degree murder. Lacchei pleaded not guilty during an arraignment hearing.
Lacchei is scheduled to appear in court again on September 12 for a status of fitness hearing.