Steakhouse owner stabbed to death during gender reveal party, Illinois cops say

A 51-year-old restaurant owner was fatally stabbed during a gender reveal party held at his business, according to Illinois police and news reports.

Three people have been arrested following the Saturday, Feb. 8, killing of Joshua Kirkwood, who owned 41 14 Forty One Fourteen Steaks & Seafood in Waukegan, according to WGN.

Kirkwood was having a “heated discussion” with one of his workers, identified as his girlfriend by media outlets, at the restaurant when the worker’s sons got involved, according to court documents obtained by WMAQ.

One of them, a 16-year-old boy, is accused of stabbing Kirkwood multiple times with a kitchen knife and leaving with his 21-year-old brother, WLS reported.

Kirkwood was taken to a hospital, where WLS reported he was pronounced dead.

“For this incident to occur inside this facility where he sweat blood and tears, (it’s) a tragic loss,” Sam Cunningham, who was friends with Kirkwood and the former city mayor, told WGN.

Kirkwood was also the owner of Create Your Own Cheesecake and Cheesesteak in Waukegan, the Lake & McHenry County Scanner reported.

The 21-year-old, identified as Iziah Gonzalez, faces murder charges, according to WMAQ. The gender reveal party was for him and his wife.

Two others were also in custody, WGN reported, but it’s unclear if they have been charged.

“He just wanted a place where we could have brunch, karaoke, and games,” Waukegan resident Jurnee Iverson said of Kirkwood, WLS reported. “I really haven’t come to terms with it yet, because it’s the exact opposite of what he was striving for.”

Waukegan is about a 45-mile drive northwest from Chicago.

This story was originally published February 11, 2025 at 11:31 AM with the headline "Steakhouse owner stabbed to death during gender reveal party, Illinois cops say."