Both the Village of Forest Park and the Illinois Attorney General’s office are keeping mum as the investigation into the beating of a North Riverside man at a Forest Park restaurant entered its third week.
Late last week, Melissa Merz, spokesperson for the Attorney General’s office, said that her office was still probing details of an April 5 beating which allegedly involved Berwyn Public Safety Director Frank Marzullo; his son, Jerry, an assistant Cook County state’s attorney; Frank Marzullo’s brother, Russell, a Chicago Department of Transportation employee; and two unidentified men.
Meanwhile, Forest Park officials are also keeping quiet on pending charges.
“We’re really on the attorney general’s timetable,” said Forest Park Village Administrator Michael Sturino. “I don’t make that decision. … I know there is a lot of media and community interest but this is just going to have to run the course.”
The victim of the beating, Wayne Pesek, was reportedly dragged outside the Golden Steer restaurant at 7635 W. Roosevelt Road and beaten so badly that he was hospitalized for two days at Loyola University Medical Center. He spent at least one day in the hospital’s intensive care unit. After his release, Pesek continued daily treatment and observation at Loyola.
Pesek is the former village administrator for the Village of North Riverside. Previously, he was the village’s public works director. He retired as administrator in 2001, and has worked as a consultant since.
Although Pesek told police he wanted to press charges at the time of the incident, no charges have yet been filed. The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office typically approves felony charges, but that responsibility has been shifted to the Attorney General since one of the men under investigation is an employee of the State’s Attorney.
The names of the other men involved in the beating will not be released until charges are filed.
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