A scorned woman tricked her boyfriend into killing his mistress and her family by convincing him a cartel was after him, police say.
Nathaniel Huey Jr. slaughtered his lover Zoraida Bartolomei, 32, her husband Alberto Rolon, 38, and the couple’s sons Adriel, 9, and Diego, 7, after his wife used a series of online aliases to convince him to do so.
The September 2023 massacre in Romeoville, Illinois was caused by Huey’s fiancée Ermalinda Polomo convincing him that he was being pursued by a Mexican and Bulgarian criminal organization.
Polomo convinced Huey that his lover Bartolomei – whom he met at work – was a ‘mole’ for the gangsters who leaked information about him, it is claimed.
Her scam was so successful that Huey Jr. shot dead his lover and her family. He and Polomo were killed in a fireball crash days later, after being identified as the suspect in the murders and pursued by police.
Nathaniel Huey, 32, is alleged to have murdered a family of four in suburban Illinois a year ago, while police now allege his fiancée Ermalinda Palomo, 50 (pictured together) forced him to commit the murders with an elaborate online conspiracy
Zoraida Bartolomei, 32, her husband Alberto Rolon and their children Adriel, 10, and Diego, seven, were shot in November 2023 at their home in the Chicago suburb of Romeoville.
According to reported court documents, Palomo began her elaborate murder plot after discovering that Huey was in a “romantic relationship” with Bartolomei, who met at their workplace at an engineering firm.
Without Huey’s knowledge, Palomo then created a series of fake social media accounts pretending to be owned by the fictional criminal organization, police said.
She then reportedly contacted Huey and Bartolomei, threatening to expose their relationship.
According to police reports first revealed by NBC5Palomo continued to convince Huey that “he was under constant surveillance by the organization and its leaders were questioning his loyalty and trustworthiness.”
“Based on years of communication, Nathaniel’s response appears to indicate that he fully believed the information Ermalinda gave him, but was unaware that Ermalinda was the person he was communicating with,” the report said.
The plot escalated two days before the murders, when Palomo convinced her fiancé that his mistress was a “mole” within the fictional cartel and was “planning to attack him.”
Police said Huey entered the family’s home through an unlocked kitchen door before shooting his mistress, her husband and her two young children while trying to make the scene look like a “burglary.”
Palomo allegedly tricked Huey into killing his mistress and her family by creating fake social media profiles to convince him he was being targeted by the cartel
Using the cartel alias, Palomo then plotted with Huey and convinced him that he could avoid this impending attack by killing Bartolomei first.
“They canvassed the neighborhood to locate cameras, planned how to get in and out of the house, and discovered that the house behind Zoraida’s was vacant,” the report said.
The report claimed they discussed how many family members lived in the home, including Bartolomei’s two young sons, and the “number and type of dogs in the home.”
“Ermalinda tells Nathaniel to cause damage so the scene looks like a burglary committed by children,” the report said. ‘Ermalinda reassured Nathaniel by saying, ‘Many murders remain unsolved.’
Although police say Palomo orchestrated the murders under false aliases, it is alleged that she drove Huey to the family’s home and waited in the car while he carried out the murders.
It is not explained why Palomo was directly involved in the murder plot, with Huey reportedly still believing her online aliases were real.
It’s unclear why he drove her to the house and whether he told her he was being threatened – not knowing she was actually behind it.
After the murders of Bartolomei, Rolon and their two sons Adriel, 9, and Diego, 7, Huey “spray-painted the walls in an attempt to deter investigators by creating the impression that children were committing a senseless crime,” police said.
According to police reports, Huey tried to make the scene look like a burglary and was able to enter the house through an unlocked door to the kitchen around 3 p.m.
Rolon then encountered Huey when he went to investigate the noise in his home, which led Huey to shoot the father of two several times.
Huey moved into a bedroom where Bartolomei and her children were and fired several shots through the door, hitting his mistress several times.
He then entered the room and murdered her two young sons, Adriel, 9, and Diego, 7, before spray-painting the walls in an attempt to ‘throw off investigators by creating the appearance of children committing a senseless crime’ , the report said. .
The couple’s three dogs also died in the massacre.
After killing the family, Huey allegedly contacted Palomo’s fake accounts again, expressing concern that he had forgotten to take the victim’s phones from the scene.
Romeoville police said they discovered the killings the next day after a welfare check, and said the family had been shot a total of 20 times.
Palomo convinced Huey that Bartolomei (left, with her family) was a ‘mole’ within the cartel who planned to attack him
Huey (seen on his Facebook) initially denied his involvement in the murders, but reportedly confessed to his mother before fleeing to Oklahoma
Detectives identified Huey’s vehicle through Ring doorbell footage, and he was interviewed the morning after the murders after leaving for work.
He reportedly admitted to the affair but denied any involvement in the murders and refused to let officers search his vehicle.
“Later in the day he was seen transferring a bag containing firearms from his (vehicle) to another person. The bag and its contents were later seized,” the report said.
Huey confessed the murders to his mother as police closed in, and two days after the murders, Palomo was reported missing by her family as the couple fled.
Police then tracked the couple to Catoosa, Oklahoma, with CCTV footage catching them smiling as they left a Walmart.
When police approached them in the parking lot, the couple fled in their car, leading to a police chase that ended when Huey crashed the car.
Although the vehicle exploded in a fiery wreck, investigators said Huey and Palomo actually died from gunshot wounds Huey fired during the crash.
Police tracked the couple to Catoosa, Oklahoma, and surveillance footage caught them smiling as they left a Walmart two days after the murders
Huey attempted to evade authorities after his vehicle was tracked to Catoosa, Oklahoma, but he crashed the vehicle and it caught fire (pictured). During the wreck, he allegedly fatally shot himself and Palomo
“Nathaniel shot Ermalinda in the head, killing her. He shot himself under the chin, but that shot didn’t kill him, so he shot himself in the head again. Both died,” the police report said.
In a statement after the shocking motive was revealed this week, Romeoville Police Chief Brant Hromadka said the shocking conclusion does not end the tragedy of the family’s deaths.
“The tragic death of a young family, including two young children, will forever impact the surviving family and those who investigated this case,” he said.
“Nothing can prepare anyone for such an incident, and nothing can justify such a senseless act of violence. Although concluded, the finality of this case unfortunately does not mean the end for so many who continue to grieve.”
