Police say husband, wife likely killed each other
By Serena Maria Daniels, Tribune reporter
8:41 PM CST, March 2, 2010
A South Side husband and wife who recently had reconciled were found fatally stabbed in their apartment, the man's sister said Tuesday.
Chicago police said Mario Zavala, 46, and his wife, Krystal, 22, likely killed each other, but they didn't rule out a murder-suicide.
The couple had a "volatile relationship" but had recently gotten back together at the wife's Gage Park apartment, police News Affairs Officer Laura Kubiak said. "We think it's a case of mutual combatants."
The wife's landlord discovered the bodies after Krystal Zavala's co-worker called to report that she had not made it to work Monday, said Sylvia Zavala, the husband's sister.
Kubiak said both victims sustained multiple stab wounds, but the Cook County medical examiner's office held off on determining a cause of death pending the police investigation.
There were no signs of forced entry into the apartment in the 5700 block of South Albany Avenue, Kubiak said. A knife was found at the scene.
Mario Zavala was sentenced in 1987 to 33 years in prison for a gang-related murder, court records showed. Kubiak said he served 20 years of that sentence.
Sylvia Zavala said the relationship between her brother and his wife was typical. They occasionally argued, but neither was physically abusive toward the other, she said. However, her brother admitted to cheating on his wife about a month ago, prompting his wife to break off the relationship and move out, she said.
The couple, though, quickly made up, and Mario Zavala moved in with his wife in her apartment, Sylvia Zavala said.
sedaniels@tribune.com
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