Truck Buyer Returns—MURDERS Pregnant Mom

A routine Facebook Marketplace transaction turned into a nightmare of unthinkable brutality when a 19-year-old buyer returned to a young mother’s doorstep, stabbed her 70 times, killed her family dog, and set her apartment ablaze—all because he was unhappy with a used truck.

Story Snapshot

Eliza Morales, 30 and pregnant, was stabbed approximately 70 times during a follow-up meeting for a Facebook Marketplace truck sale at her Downers Grove, Illinois apartment
Nedas Revuckas, 19, confessed to murdering Morales, attacking her dog, and committing arson after becoming frustrated with the condition of the 1994 Ford Ranger he purchased
Morales told her attacker she was pregnant during the assault, yet the violence continued; her 2-year-old daughter was not home during the attack
Police quickly apprehended Revuckas at his girlfriend’s home after finding the victim’s truck in the driveway and bloodied clothing linking him to the crime
The tragedy has ignited renewed concerns about the dangers of online marketplace transactions conducted at private residences

When a Deal Becomes a Death Trap

Gabriel Morales never imagined that listing his family’s old pickup truck would cost him everything. The weekend transaction seemed straightforward enough—a buyer named Nedas Revuckas responded to the Facebook Marketplace ad for a 1994 Ford Ranger and picked up the vehicle. The follow-up meeting on Monday evening to exchange license plates and finalize paperwork should have taken minutes. Instead, surveillance footage captured Revuckas arriving at the Downers Grove apartment building around 5:30 p.m., with Eliza Morales handing him a screwdriver through the doorway. Seventeen minutes later, a young mother lay dying, stabbed dozens of times, while flames began consuming her home.

The Horrifying Details That Defy Comprehension

Court documents reveal a level of violence that shocks even seasoned investigators. Revuckas attacked Eliza Morales with ferocity that left approximately 70 stab wounds across her body, concentrated on her head and neck. During the assault, Morales desperately told her attacker she was pregnant, pleading for her life and that of her unborn child. The revelation did nothing to stop the violence. Revuckas then turned on the family’s pit bull mix, stabbing the dog between the eyes before setting the apartment on fire in an apparent attempt to destroy evidence. First responders arriving at 6:09 p.m. found Morales dead and the apartment engulfed in flames. The injured dog managed to escape and received emergency treatment.

A Confession Built on Anger and Lies

Law enforcement located Revuckas within hours at his girlfriend’s residence, where the Ford Ranger sat prominently in the driveway like a neon sign pointing to guilt. When confronted, Revuckas initially denied involvement but quickly crumbled under questioning. He confessed to the murder, arson, and attack on the dog, claiming his motivation stemmed from frustration over the truck’s condition. Prosecutors detailed how Revuckas attempted to rob Morales when she resisted his demands at her doorstep, escalating to lethal violence. Strangely, Revuckas claimed he stabbed her only 10 times, a dramatic undercount contradicted by autopsy findings showing 70 wounds. The discrepancy reveals either a perpetrator attempting to minimize his brutality or someone who lost count during an uncontrolled rage.

A Family Shattered and a Community in Mourning

Gabriel Morales now faces raising his 2-year-old daughter alone, forever robbed of watching his wife become a mother again. His mother-in-law, Angelica Silva, described the act as “pure evil,” a sentiment echoed throughout the grieving community. Family members have committed to raising the toddler as Eliza would have wanted, preserving her memory through the child she left behind. A GoFundMe campaign launched to support funeral expenses and the family’s immediate needs has raised over 30,000 dollars toward a 40,000 dollar goal, with Gabriel expressing gratitude that even in darkness, compassion persists. A vigil held Wednesday brought together community members struggling to comprehend how a simple online sale devolved into such senseless carnage.

The Facebook Marketplace Danger Nobody Wants to Discuss

This tragedy underscores a growing pattern of violence tied to online marketplace transactions that platforms and users alike prefer to ignore. Facebook Marketplace facilitates approximately one billion listings annually across the United States, creating countless opportunities for in-person exchanges between strangers. Robberies, assaults, and even murders during these meetups have become disturbingly routine, yet the platform offers minimal safety infrastructure beyond generic warnings. The fundamental problem lies in the collision of convenience and vulnerability—sellers often conduct transactions at their homes for ease, unknowingly inviting potential predators to learn their addresses and assess their defenses. Revuckas knew exactly where to find Eliza Morales because the initial sale required him to pick up the truck from her residence. That familiarity proved fatal.

What This Case Reveals About Modern Evil

The Revuckas case forces uncomfortable questions about proportionality and human nature. Frustration over a used vehicle’s condition is universal; transforming that annoyance into a campaign of murder, animal cruelty, and arson is pathological. The claim that dissatisfaction with a decades-old truck justified this response insults both logic and decency. More disturbing is the continuation of violence after Morales revealed her pregnancy—a disclosure that would provoke protective instincts in functional human beings but merely provided Revuckas with additional information as he continued his attack. The calculated decision to stab the family dog and commit arson suggests premeditation in covering tracks, contradicting any narrative of spontaneous rage. Revuckas now faces charges including first-degree murder, armed robbery, arson, and animal cruelty while held in DuPage County Jail, potentially facing life imprisonment.

Practical Wisdom Born from Tragedy

Eliza Morales paid with her life for following conventional online selling practices, but her death can save others if we extract the right lessons. Never conduct marketplace transactions at your home, regardless of convenience or the buyer’s apparent trustworthiness. Police stations nationwide now offer designated safe exchange zones with surveillance cameras and officer presence specifically for online sales. Bring someone with you to every transaction, eliminating the isolation that emboldens criminals. Trust your instincts when something feels wrong about a buyer or situation, even if it means losing a sale. For vehicle transactions requiring home pickup, provide only a nearby public location address until payment clears and references check out. These precautions seem paranoid until they prevent becoming another headline, another grieving family, another cautionary tale about the price of misplaced trust in digital strangers.