Suspect Charged In Attack That Killed Disabled Man On Howard Street
EVANSTON, Ill. (CBS) -- A south suburban man stands charged with beating and robbing a disabled man on the Evanston side of Howard Street, in an attack that later resulted in the man's death.
Brandon Lee Allen Hinton, 26, of Hazel Crest, is charged with one count each of first-degree murder and aggravated robbery in the attack that killed John Costulas, 62.
Evanston police say Costulas was walking to work around 5:20 a.m. Sept. 2, when he was attacked by Hinton near a Marathon gas station at 555 Howard St. in Evanston – near the Metra Union Pacific North tracks, and across from the intersection with Wolcott Avenue on the Chicago side of the street.
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Hinton attacked Costulas without provocation, hitting him in the head and causing him to collapse and fall to the ground, police said.
Afterward, Hinton took $10 from Costulas' wallet and left him for dead, police said.
Costulas was unconscious and bleeding when he was taken to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston. He survived for more than a week, but was pronounced dead there at 3:38 a.m. this past Saturday, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office.
An autopsy determined that Costulas died from blunt head trauma due to an assault.
The Chicago Tribune says Costulas was hearing-impaired and walked with a cane, and weighed only 130 pounds. He lived in an apartment building for people with disabilities in the 7500 block of North Hoyne Avenue, managed by the Anixter Center where he worked, the Tribune reported.
Two people were questioned after the attack, and Hinton was charged after police say he gave a full confession. A second person of interest was released without charges.
Court information for Hinton was not immediately available.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
