CHICAGO — Opening statements were heard Tuesday in the Trial of a woman accused of murdering her landlord and stuffing the body inside a freezer.
Jailed since the fall of 2022, Sandra Kolalou faces first-degree murder and concealment of homicide charges. Kolalou is suspected of killing and dismembering her boarding house owner, 69-year-old Frances Walker. Authorities discovered Walker’s remains in the freezer of the Westridge Boarding House, located in the 5900 block of North Washtenaw.
Defense Attorney Clyde Guilamo and his legal team, which included Sean Brown and others, argued at the Leighton Criminal Courts Building that the Chicago police investigation was inadequate.
RELATED | ‘Tried to kill me’: Chicago woman describes encounter with woman accused of dismemberment
“The reality is they did not do a thorough investigation in this case,” Guilamo said. “This was a boarding house that had seven different individuals residing there and two other individuals that frequented that location.”
Kolalou’s lawyers suggest that detectives didn’t investigate the other tenants in the boarding house.
But prosecutors painted a different story.
In their opening statements, prosecutors announced plans to call several key witnesses who they saw Kolalou with a black garbage bag in an alleged attempt to dispose of Walker’s body parts.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | Court: Eviction notice issued prior to dismemberment of North Side boarding house owner
Authorities never recovered the victim’s torso.
Frances Walker disappeared in October of 2022 after family members said she tried to evict Kolalou. Loved ones pointed to what they said was threatening behavior on the defendant’s part.
