Sandra Kolalou, 36 and a Chicago resident is facing murder charges for the death of 69 years old Frances Walker, the owner of the apartment she was renting.
Sandra Kolalouwas accused of killing and dismembering Walker last fall at her Northwest Side apartment building and could be going to trial in under a year at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse.
When Chicago police searched the house where she rented a room in October, they found Walker’s head, arms, and legs stuffed inside a kitchen freezer, officials said.
Kolalou’s attorney, Sean Brown, demanded her right to a speedy trial during a hearing after a Cook County judge denied his motion to set bail for Kolalou while the case progresses.
Sandra Kolalou: Possible motive
Chicago Police Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan has revealed that the trigger for the October 2022 attack could have been an eviction notice presented to 69-year-old Ann Walker by her tenant, Melisa Kolalou. He said that the notice might have been what “escalated” the situation, which led to Walker’s murder and dismemberment using a large butcher knife. Law enforcement sources suggested that Kolalou may have thrown evidence, including bloody towels, into Lake Michigan.
Kolalou, who works in marketing, was allegedly seen hauling a “large plastic bag” to a tow truck, which was later found to contain Walker’s remains, including a head and several limbs. The tenant was apprehended when she allegedly threatened the tow truck driver with a knife.
According to Deenihan, the police received a call from one of Walker’s tenants, who reported her missing, and warned them about the tenant, “that the other tenants were afraid of”. Following this, detectives searched the property and made the grim discovery.
Kolalou maintains her innocence, and her assistant public defender called the prosecutor’s case “largely circumstantial.”
In 2012, court records showed that Kolalou was charged with a misdemeanor count of domestic battery that was dropped. Later that year, she was accused of two misdemeanor counts of simple battery and pleaded guilty. She was sentenced to 12 months of court supervision.
She also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of theft in 2015 and was sentenced to two days in Cook County Jail.
A YouTube account belonging to Kolalou includes multiple videos showing her rapping, trying on clothes, driving through Wicker Park, and posing with a family member. In one video, a person can be seen firing a handgun in a field.
A LinkedIn page belonging to her lists her occupation over the last year as chief executive of “Women Empowering Women of All,” an organization with no clear online presence. The page also claims she earned a bachelor of business administration degree from Northeastern University, an associate of science degree from the University of Southern California, and a master of philosophy degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Kolalou’s ex-husband, who requested anonymity because he’s in the military, said he was shocked to learn of the allegations.
“I cannot imagine her doing that,” he told the Sun-Times.
Granting that the demand for a speedy trial will be granted, more will be known about who is the real Sandra Kolalou, a murderer or just plain unlucky for being at the wrong place at the wrong time.