Murder suspect dad: 'If I can’t have them neither can you’

This booking photo provided by the Office of the States Attorney of Lake County, Illinois, shows Jason Karels on Monday, June 13, 2022. Karels faces three counts of first-degree murder in the drowning deaths Monday of his three young children. (Office of the States Attorney of Lake County, Illinois via AP)

A suburban Chicago man charged in the drowning deaths of his three young children left a note for his estranged wife saying, “If I can’t have them neither can you,” prosecutors said Wednesday.

The note was mentioned during a bond hearing for Jason E. Karels, 35, of Round Lake Beach, who faces three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths Monday of 5-year-old Bryant Karels, 3-year-old Cassidy Karels and 2-year-old Gideon Karels.