Child Custody Dispute Suspected Catalyst Of Unsolved Murders

In a case that would puzzle any Illinois family law attorney, it seems like a child custody battle may be the cause of a tragic double homicide. Roughly one year has passed since a Joliet couple was found shot to death in their home, the Chicago Tribune reports. Brian and Angela Charles were survived by their two-year-old son, Sean, who was asleep in his crib.

Sadly, murder is nothing new to the greater Chicago area. But what's unique about this particular cold case is the heated child custody trial that was set to begin just a few weeks after the couple was killed execution-style.

Mr. Charles' former wife, 31-year-old Kathleen Rundle had sought custody of their two children. That in itself probably is no reason to suspect she had anything to do with the murders, but there's more to this story.

Ms. Rundle reportedly discovered the two bodies. Investigators focused on Ms. Rundle as a suspect and searched her home two days after the killings on a warrant, according to court records cited by the Tribune.

But she reportedly refused to cooperate, hired a lawyer, and moved to California with the two children who were the subjects of the scheduled custody trial. Ms. Rundle's attorney declined to comment on the case.

In addition to the bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Charles, relatives said they discovered that a back window had been broken and that a video game console and some video games were missing from the home. Meanwhile, Ms. Rundle told investigators she went to her ex-husband's home to pick up video games for her kids.

However, family members of the victims told police that Ms. Rundle didn't allow her children to play video games. Not quite a smoking gun, but the circumstances surrounding this case raise plenty of questions regarding Ms. Rundle's intentions.

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