Father’s Day was especially hard for Jonathan and Kayla, the children of the late Arturo Cantu, said one of his sisters. (Photo provided)
Exactly three months to the day after Arturo Cantu Jr. was shot and killed outside his Bridgeview apartment, his alleged killer was back in court.
Anthony Calderon, 20, of Bedford Park, appeared in Room 101 of the Bridgeview Court House before Cook County Circuit Court Associate Judge Margaret M. Ogarek for a status hearing.
Unlike his lover and co-defendant Agnieszka Rydzewski, whose public defender attempted to secure release under electronic monitoring, Calderon’s public defender John Jenkins did nothing of the sort.
Rather, Jenkins and Assistant District Attorney Naheda Zayyad Ogarek reported discoveries they had exchanged during the five-minute status hearing.
Zayyad said the amount of discoveries was “significant.”
Calderon is charged with premeditated murder in the May 15 death of Cantu.
Rydzewski, 34, is accused of incitement to murder because she was involved in the death of her long-time friend Cantu.
Cantu, father of two children, would have turned 40 this summer. The couple had lived together for six years.
Ogarek noted that Cantu’s family was present in the courtroom. His mother was unable to attend and watched the hearing via Zoom.
After reviewing case notes, Ogarek told Calderon that he was in the Cook County Jail, where he had been held since May.
“It is necessary to ensure the safety of the witnesses in this case and the community,” the judge said.
Ogarek has his next hearing scheduled for October 24 at 9:30 a.m., one day after Rydzewski’s next hearing. Both are in Room 101.
Calderon allegedly shot Cantu four times around 5 a.m. on May 15 before he drove to his job at WeatherTech.
At her Aug. 14 status hearing, Zayyad said Rydzewski texted Calderon before the shooting that said, “Time to shine, baby.”
Ogarek told Calderon on Thursday that he had the right to file a request for release, in which “you must state all the reasons why you should be released.”
When she asked him if he understood, he replied, “Yes, Your Honor.”
Calderon wore a short-sleeved white T-shirt under his tan correctional coveralls. His black hair and beard were neatly trimmed. He wore glasses.
He paid no attention to Cantu’s family entering or leaving the courtroom.
Family members declined to comment for this story. One relative showed a memorial placed on Cantu’s gravestone and added, “Right now, the whole family is suffering.”
According to prosecutors, the co-defendants – who worked together at McDonald’s in Bridgeview – had a sexual relationship and had discussed Cantu’s murder for several months.
They reportedly spoke to a Manny about killing Cantu. After Manny backed down, Calderon said, “I’ll do it myself,” Zayyad said Wednesday.
Calderon later told Rydzewski he was “a man who will prove his worth,” Zayyad said.
Zayyad said Rydzewski told Calderon she was “unhappy with the victim” and “did not want to be with him.”
Zayyad told the court that Rydzewski helped Cantu obtain a $25,000 life insurance policy in March, and she was the beneficiary.
Zayyad said video from a nearby security camera shows Calderon, wearing a mask and holding a gun, approaching Cantu in the parking lot of the couple’s apartment in the 7300 block of 79th Street.
