Illinois Nurse's Murder Revealed in 7-Hour Audio Recording

When Kevin Motykie was arrested in the garage of his suburban Chicago home on April 30, police discovered something that would turn a tragic case into a prosecutorial nightmare—an audio device in his pocket containing hours of evidence he allegedly created himself.

What officers found on that recording is almost incomprehensible: more than seven hours of audio documenting the torture, sexual assault, and murder of Katherine Torbick, a gastroenterology nurse and mother who had previously gone to police out of fear for her safety. The recorded attack allegedly unfolded between 2 AM and 9:24 AM that morning, capturing Torbick’s pleas as Motykie handcuffed her, battered her, and ultimately strangled her to death. Prosecutors say the brutality was triggered by Motykie’s jealousy—he accused her of cheating.

The details paint a picture of escalating danger that Torbick herself had already reported. In March, she’d filed a felony complaint against Motykie. She knew something was wrong. She went to the authorities. And yet, seven weeks later, she was dead in the home they shared, her suffering recorded in chilling detail.

What makes this case even more disturbing is the voluntary nature of the recording. Motykie didn’t hide what he’d done—he documented it. He kept the device on him as he was taken into custody. That kind of behavior signals either someone profoundly detached from consequence, or someone so consumed by rage that the act itself mattered more than concealment. Either way, it underscores a critical reality: when someone threatens violence, when protective orders are filed, when fear drives a person to police—those warnings deserve to be treated as the red flags they are.

At Friday’s detention hearing, a judge ordered Motykie held without bail. Katherine Torbick, who worked to care for others, will never get that chance at safety again.