Police say Daniest Graves, 88, was reported missing days before officers found her body in the basement of her South Side home.
CHICAGO, Ill. — A 66-year-old man has been charged after his 88-year-old mother, who had been reported missing from Chicago’s Roseland neighborhood, was found dead in the basement of the home they shared, authorities said.
The case quickly moved from a missing-person investigation to a homicide prosecution this week after officers returned to the house in the 10700 block of South Lafayette Avenue and found Daniest Graves dead. Chicago police identified her son, Kevan Works, as the defendant and said he faces a first-degree murder charge and a charge of concealing a homicide. The death has drawn attention across the Far South Side because Graves had been missing for days before she was found and because relatives say the two had been living under the same roof.
Friends and relatives last saw Graves on March 27, according to police records, and she was reported missing on March 30 after family members grew alarmed. The concern deepened when her daily routines stopped and the calls and messages that usually connected her with relatives no longer came. Investigators later returned to the Roseland home after obtaining a search warrant. Police said officers found Graves in the basement Tuesday morning at the same South Lafayette Avenue address. Works was arrested there. By Thursday, Chicago police announced that he had been charged. In a brief description of the scene, investigators said Graves had been wrapped in household materials in the basement. The discovery turned what had been a missing-person case into a homicide investigation centered on the family home.
Authorities have released only limited details about what they believe happened inside the house. The Cook County medical examiner ruled Graves’ death a homicide and said she died from multiple injuries after an assault. Court and police records cited by local media said officers who first went to the home during the missing-person inquiry found Works uncooperative and not visibly concerned about his mother’s disappearance. Investigators later came back with a warrant and made the discovery in the basement. Police have not publicly described a motive, said whether any weapon was recovered, or explained exactly when they believe Graves was killed. They also have not offered a full public timeline from the days between her last known contact and the discovery of her body. Area 2 detectives are continuing the investigation.
The case has also brought renewed focus to the risks faced by older adults who become isolated inside their own homes. Neighbors told reporters they rarely saw Graves outside, though they did notice a man coming and going from the address. Family members described her as active and deeply rooted in her church life even at 88. Relatives said she was known for helping people, sending inspirational messages and staying busy. One account from local television said she had earned a college degree in her 80s and recently started part-time community work. Those details sharpened the contrast between the public image of Graves as a helpful elder and the grim conditions in which police said they found her. For neighbors, the address on South Lafayette became the center of a story that unfolded first as worry, then as shock, and finally as a murder case.
The legal case is now in its opening stage. Works is charged with first-degree murder and concealing the death of a person, according to Chicago police and multiple local reports. A detention hearing was expected Friday as prosecutors moved the case into court. At that hearing, prosecutors were expected to outline the facts they say support detention and the charges, while a judge would decide whether Works should remain jailed as the case proceeds. More records are likely to emerge through court filings, including details about the search warrant, the timeline inside the home and the evidence collected by investigators. Police have not said whether additional charges are possible. For now, the central questions are when Graves was killed, what evidence ties the defendant to the death, and what prosecutors say happened during the days she was missing.
Outside the courtroom, the reaction has been one of grief and disbelief. Michael Works, identified by local television as the suspect’s brother, said he struggled to accept that his missing mother had been found dead and that his brother was accused in the case. He described mixed feelings, saying his brother had a temper and a criminal past but that the family still found it hard to imagine violence against their mother. Neighbors voiced a similar shock. One woman who lives across the street said she did not know what had happened when she first saw police flood the block, then later learned Graves had died. Another neighbor remembered Graves simply as “a real nice lady.” Those remarks, while brief, reflected the confusion left behind when a quiet residential block became the scene of a homicide investigation involving an elderly woman and her son.
As of Friday, Works faced murder and concealment charges, and investigators had not publicly disclosed a motive. The next milestone in the case was the detention hearing, where prosecutors were expected to present their first detailed account in court.
Author note: Last updated April 10, 2026.