Another status hearing, another delay. Such is life for the family of the late Arturo Cantu Jr.
Once again, four members of Cantu’s family sat in the first row of Room 101 at the Bridgeview Courthouse on the morning of March 26.
And, once again, they waited patiently at a status hearing for the man and woman charged with killing Cantu, 39, their son, brother and nephew.
And, once again, after a hearing that lasted all of four minutes, they were told to return to Room 101 for another status hearing at 9:30 a.m. May 21.
All of this waiting is wearing on the family, said Cantu’s brother, Jose Pacheco, 34.
“With these court dates continuing, we’re not getting closure. The wound is still open. Whatever the state throws at (them), accept it. Let’s close the wound. Let’s move on,” he said.
Police and the state allege that Anthony Calderon, 21, whom they say was having an affair with Agnieszka Rydzewski, 34, was urged and convinced by her to shoot and kill Cantu.
The night before the shooting, the state said at a previous hearing, Rydzewski allegedly told Calderon, “Time to shine, babe.”
Police and the state say Calderon shot and killed Cantu the very next day.
At the March 26 hearing, the state and public defender told Circuit Court Associate Judge Margaret M. Ogarek that while they have exchanged evidence in discovery, more is needed.
That sat poorly with Jose Pacheco.
“It’s ridiculous. (Calderon) should be doing time (in prison) already,” he said.
Jose, who fondly recalls many happy moments with Cantu, shared a few in the lobby outside the courtroom.
“I’m his little brother. He looked out all the time for everybody. Me, my sisters. It didn’t matter who it was, he looked out for them.
“If he went to the store to buy some shoes and he saw you needed (new) shoes, he’d buy you shoes, too,” Jose said. “He always tried to be close to his siblings.”
One specific memory is often on his mind. It was early on a weekend morning at their mother’s house.
“Every sibling was together at Mom’s house. … Me and him got up and started cooking for the whole family. We made everything. Bacon, eggs, french toast, you name it. A variety of everything,” Jose said.
His mother, Diana Pacheco, smiled and chimed in, “and sausage.”
“It felt good for my kids to cook. I loved it,” she said.
It was a big spread for seven siblings, Diana and her husband. No one left the table hungry.
“That,” Jose said, “is one of my best memories. Me and him were the cooks in the family.”
That happy memory soon faded March 26, replaced by the pain the family has endured for nearly one year.
“I’m tired of this waiting,” Diana, 54, said.
Jose said he thinks Calderon and Rydzewski, “want to get a deal” and are not taking responsibility for their actions.
“Do your time because you know you did it,” Jose said. “You’re going to spend your life in jail.”
Delia Dominguez, 55, his aunt and Diana’s sister, nodded in agreement.
“They need to be responsible for what they did,” she said.
What they allegedly did, police said, was arrange for Calderon to shoot and kill Cantu outside his apartment building as he walked to his car to drive to his job in Bolingbrook early May 15, 2024.
Diana has zero sympathy for Calderon, whose grandmother in December claimed he had been “manipulated.”
“He had a choice. He could have walked away,” Diana said. “He could have reported it (to the police). They could have prevented all this. It’s crazy. Crazy.”
Meanwhile, Diana takes comfort in hearing the song “Thought You Should Know” by Morgan Wallen.
The tender country song about a mother and son was sent to her by Cantu shortly before his death. He told her it made him think of her.
Cantu’s sister, Carolina Pacheco, will miss her big brother when she turns 33 on April 2.
“I just want my family to be at peace. Every day, if I’m not thinking of one, I’m thinking about the other. We lost my sister-in-law a few months before my brother’s passing.”
She referred to Amanda, the late wife of Jose.
“And for this to happen? Every day, we deal with everyone’s emotions,” Carolina said.
May 15, Jose added, “will be a very sad and hurtful day.”
A few steps away from the Cantu’s loved ones, Calderon’s friends, co-workers and family huddled with Cook County Public Defender Michael A. Biel, who declined comment.
Also declining comment were Virginia Gibson and Jesus Martinez. Both had worked with Calderon at a McDonald’s in Bridgeview.
In December after a status hearing, Martinez told the Desplaines Valley News that the day before the shooting, Calderon had shared with him his plan to kill Cantu.
Martinez said in December he did not alert police because he did not believe Cantu.
A few days later, he and Gibson picked up Calderon at his grandmother’s home in Bedford Park. Calderon thought they were taking him to work.
Instead, they planned to take him to the Bridgeview Police Department, but their car was soon surrounded by police cars and Calderon was arrested.
Cantu’s family wonders if money inspired the plot to kill him.
The state has said that in March 2024, Rydzewski helped Cantu obtain a $25,000 life insurance policy. She was the listed beneficiary.
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