A man was sentenced to 47 years in prison after pleading guilty to killing Joseph Kromelis — known as the “Walking Man” of downtown Chicago — by setting him on fire while he slept on a sidewalk.
Joseph Guardia, 30, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder as part of a deal with prosecutors to avoid a trial, which was scheduled to begin on Thursday, according to court records.
The killing shocked the city for its brutality against the 75-year-old Kromelis, who was easily recognized for his distinctively dapper appearance by people who frequented the Loop. Kromelis was often referred to by the nickname “Walking Man” or “Walking Dude,” because he strode with purpose around the city’s streets.
“Nothing linear, almost like a moth fly. Up this street, across, diagonal and back and down,” recalled David Jones, who had sought to make a documentary film about Kromelis. “There didn’t seem to be a lot of rhyme or reason to us. But to him I think it made perfect sense.”
When Sun-Times columnist Richard Roeper approached him in 1998, Kromelis’ provided a quick quip to a question about his walking around so much.
“Yeah, I walk all right. I like to walk. But I work, too, you know. I work in the Loop. In fact, I have to go to work right now,” he said before jogging off.
Kromelis was recognizable by his mane of dark hair that turned gray in his later years and his distinctive mustache. He had a sartorial eye for dress slacks and sport coats he often wore over a white undershirt.
A surveillance camera recorded Guardia approaching Kromelis and standing over him as he slept in a blanket early in the morning on May 25, 2022 in the 400 block of North Lower Wabash Avenue.
Guardia poured a flammable liquid onto the blanket and then lit it on fire.
Kromelis burned for three minutes before two security guards from Trump Tower came to his aid until emergency responders arrived.
He died months later of his injuries in a rehabilitation facility after being discharged from Stroger Hospital. His death was ruled a homicide.
Guardia was arrested two days after the attack in his hometown of Melrose Park and gave no explanation for his motive besides “being an angry person.” He denied knowing there was anyone in the blanket, telling detectives that he wanted to burn trash, prosecutors said at his initial hearing.
Guardia had a long history of run-ins with the law, including an ongoing burglary case, according to court records. Prosecutors said he threw a liquid substance on a CTA worker earlier the same month he attack Kromelis.
He had been held in Cook County Jail since his first appearance in court and will be given credit for 881 days already served in custody but would not be eligible for release until 2071.
Guardia has been diagnosed with mental illness that he has been treated for since he was 15, according to a statement from the public defender’s office, which represented him in the case.
A spokeswoman for the office said they had sought for Guardia to plead guilty but mentally ill but were unable to reach that agreement with prosecutors. A spokeswoman for the state’s attorney’s office was not available to comment Thursday.
The killing resonated with many who saw him over the years and wondered about life story. It also raised awareness of the vulnerability to attack that unhoused people face living on the street.
In 2016, Kromelis was attacked in a separate incident when someone beat him with a baseball bat in the 400 block of East Lower Wacker Drive.
This week’s plea comes nearly two months after a person was accused of fatally shooting four people while they slept on a CTA Blue Line train in September as it approached a station in west suburban Forest Park.
In an interview with Sun-Times reporter David Struett, Viki Mammina said she knew Kromelis as “Mojo” when they were friends in the 1970s.
She recalled her former friend as shy but always well dressed. “Joe was a person,” she said. “He really was a nice guy.”