Round Lake Beach man drowned his 3 young children, then tried to kill self, authorities say

A Round Lake Beach man is facing first-degree murder charges for allegedly killing his three young children, whose bodies were found Monday by their mother at the man’s house, Lake County authorities said Tuesday at a news conference.

Jason E. Karels, 35, of the 200 block of East Camden Lane, is charged in the drownings of his children, Bryant, 5, Cassidy, 3, and Gideon, 2.

Authorities said the suspect remains hospitalized after he crashed his car Monday afternoon after leading police on a 17-minute chase in the south suburbs, Round Lake Beach Police Chief Gilbert Rivera said.

Preliminary autopsy results indicate the children died from drowning, Chief Deputy Coroner Steve Newton said. Police, though, citing the ongoing investigation, declined to share additional details of their deaths.

The mother of the children, who is estranged from their father, had gone to the residence Monday. The children had spent the weekend with their father, and the mother had not been able to contact Karels to retrieve the children, Rivera said.

She went inside the home around 1:40 p.m. and found the bodies of her children in a bedroom, police said. The mother, whose identity was not disclosed by authorities, then called police.

Authorities issued an alert for Karels’ 2010 red Nissan Maxima. Police saw the vehicle and attempted to stop it near the intersection of Interstate 57 and 115th Street in south suburban Cook County.

Karels, though, did not stop and instead led police on what they said was a high-speed chase across multiple highways and involving numerous police departments. The pursuit ended when Karels crashed in a wooded area near Interstate 80 at Water Street in Joliet, police said.

He was taken to a hospital and then later transferred to another hospital, where he remained in stable condition Tuesday, Rivera said. The chief said Karels is expected to be discharged soon, at which point he will be brought to Lake County for an initial court appearance. That appearance has yet to be scheduled.

While he was being extricated from his car, Karels made incriminating statements regarding the deaths of the children, Rivera said. Crime scene investigators said they found blood at the residence, but it did not come from the children. Authorities said Karels unsuccessfully tried to take his own life after killing his children.

Rivera said police had no previous contacts with Karels, who lived at the Camden address for about five years. Karels and the mother were estranged, but police did not have additional details about their relationship.

Lake County Board member Dick Barr helped establish a GoFundMe page to help the mother defray expenses. As of late Tuesday afternoon, more than 355 people had contributed more than $22,000. In an accompanying note, Barr said the family had lived in his neighborhood, and that he believes mental illness played a part in the deaths.

“This was not a criminal act that is emblematic of who we are or where we live,” Barr wrote.

The fundraising page is at https://www.gofundme.com/f/3-innocent-rlb-angels.