Relatives said the 88-year-old mother stayed active, worked part time and kept close daily contact with family.
CHICAGO, Ill. — Daniest Graves’ family knew something was wrong when the 88-year-old woman stopped sending her daily prayer text, missed work and failed to appear for church plans.
The Roseland woman’s habits became central to the murder case now pending against her son, Kevan Works. Police say Works, 66, killed Graves inside her home in the 10700 block of South Lafayette Avenue and concealed her body in a basement room. He is charged with first-degree murder and concealment of a death. A judge ordered him detained pending trial after prosecutors described the evidence in court.
Graves was remembered by relatives as steady, faithful and active. She had gone shopping with her sister March 26 and returned home about 2:30 p.m., prosecutors said. The next morning, her usual prayer text did not arrive around 4 a.m. She also did not show up for her part-time job, relatives said, and she missed plans tied to church services and family outings. Those missed points of contact mattered because family members said Graves remained engaged in daily life. She drove herself, kept a routine and was not known by relatives to have dementia, despite what prosecutors said Works later told police.
Her sister’s concern brought the case to the front door. On March 29, the sister went to the South Lafayette Avenue home and asked to come inside, prosecutors said. Works answered, appeared startled and refused to allow her in. He said Graves was not home. Prosecutors said he then went inside and returned with an air freshener before the sister left and contacted police. That moment, family members said, deepened fears because Graves normally stayed in touch. Police then responded to the home for a well-being check.
Works told officers he had not seen his mother since March 27 and said she had gone to work, prosecutors said. He also said he could not enter her bedroom because the door was locked and he had no key. Officers forced the door open and found Graves’ cellphone in the room. They did not find her. Investigators later determined that the phone had last been used in the home on March 29. Prosecutors said Works suggested Graves had wandered away because of dementia. Relatives rejected that account, saying she was still healthy enough to drive, work and keep church plans.
The search widened beyond Roseland after police located Graves’ car on the West Side. A witness told investigators that Works and an unidentified woman brought the car to her March 27 and exchanged it for crack cocaine, prosecutors said. The witness said she drove Works and the woman back to Graves’ home. She also said two large black garbage bags were in the car and that Works asked her to have her children throw them away. The witness refused. Authorities have not publicly said what became of the bags, and they have not announced charges against the unidentified woman.
Police returned to the home April 7 with a search warrant. Cadaver dogs led officers to a basement room blocked by a large bookcase, prosecutors said. Inside, officers found Graves’ body rolled in a large rug, partly wrapped in black garbage bags and secured with duct tape. Blankets, clothing, mail and other debris were wrapped with her. The discovery ended the missing-person search and led prosecutors to describe the case as both a killing and an effort to hide a death. Works was arrested that day in the same area where his mother was found.
Investigators reported finding signs of violence and possible cleanup inside the house. Prosecutors said suspected blood and what looked like dried bleach were found on the floor of Graves’ bedroom. Officers recovered a folding knife with suspected blood on it, a hammer, brass knuckles and a large bottle of bleach. They also found air fresheners, dryer sheets and coffee grounds in parts of the home. Graves’ purse and wallet were found in a garbage can in the garage. Jewelry boxes were found open and empty in the attic, while jewelry was found elsewhere appearing to have been recently cleaned.
The autopsy showed Graves suffered 17 blunt force injuries, prosecutors said. She had a severe head wound and injuries to her arms, forearm and thumb that prosecutors described as defensive wounds. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide. Prosecutors argued the evidence pointed to violence connected to taking Graves’ property. During the detention hearing, Cook County Judge Rivanda Doss Beal said the allegations reflected “violence inflicted against the victim to get her things.” Works has not been convicted and is presumed innocent while the charges are pending.
The case also brought forward a painful family history. Prosecutors said Works had a record that included a 2007 federal bank robbery conviction and prior convictions for drug possession, retail theft, forgery and burglary. They also said he was adjudicated in a first-degree murder case as a juvenile in 1976. After court, Clyde McLemore, Works’ half-brother, said Graves had made sacrifices decades earlier to help Works when he faced the juvenile case. “She sold the house and everything and got him served as a juvenile,” McLemore said. The statement framed the current accusation as a deep rupture within the family.
Michael Works, another son, said the charge against his brother was difficult to process. He said Kevan Works had a temper and a record, but Graves never told him she feared him. “It was the last thing on my mind that he would lift a finger against our mother,” Michael Works said. Relatives said Graves had earned a college degree in her 80s and had recently started a part-time job helping the community. They described her as a churchgoing woman whose absence was noticed quickly because she built her days around family, faith and service.
Prosecutors have not announced additional charges, and police have not publicly named another suspect in Graves’ death. Kevan Works is scheduled for an April 29 status hearing in Cook County court.
Author note: Last updated May 4, 2026.