Crime & Safety

Regional Police Report: Fire Causes $1 Million in Damage; Man Convicted in Murder Caught with Gun

The following police-related items were taken from area Patches. When an arrest is referenced it should not be considered a conviction.


 

By Brian Slupski:

Inverness


Fire Causes $1 million in Damage

3-alarm fire at an Inverness home Tuesday caused more than $1 million in damages and sent two Palatine Rural firefighters to the hospital due to heat exhaustion.Palatine Rural Fire Department Captain Jeff Dill said the fire at 14 Carnoustie Lane began at approximately 4:45 p.m. July 16.

Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated after 5 p.m., which requests assistance from neighboring fire departments. Dill said due to the heat and remote location of the home, the fire was quickly upgraded from a Code 3 to a Code 4 alarm. 

Find out what's happening in Algonquin-Lake In The Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

It took nearly three hours and upwards of 100 firefighters from dozens of neighboring departments to extinguish the blaze, Dill said. The fire was officially under control at 8:30 p.m., though firefighters remained at the scene until just before 11 p.m. to ensure it did not rekindle.

For more on this story.

Find out what's happening in Algonquin-Lake In The Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Fox River Grove

Man Killed in Motorcycle Crash

A 22-year-old Fox River Grove man was killed in a single-vehicle motorcycle crash in the 9600 block of McConnell Road east of Woodstock around 7:25 p.m. on Saturday, July 13, according to a McHenry County Sheriff's Office press release. 

Jeremy T. Rodgers, of 407 Orchard St. Apt. A, was traveling west on McConnel Road when his vehicle left the north side of the road. Rodgers was ejected from the vehicle, which overturned and struck multiple trees, according to the news release. 

Rodgers was taken to Centegra Memorial Medical Center in Woodstock where he was pronounced dead. He was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

For more on this story.


Gurnee

Police: Man Thought he was Meeting 14-year-old for Sex

A Gurnee man was arrested Tuesday after showing up to a location to meet who he thought was a 14-year-old girl after responding to an ad for a "companion" on Craigslist.

Todd Thompson, 35, of the 16000 block of Washington Street, Gurnee, was charged with four counts of Indecent Solicitation of a Child, according to a Lake County Sheriff's Department press release.

The underage female Thompson thought he was meeting was actually a sheriff's detective. Once in custody, Thompson told detectives his intentions were to meet with a girl to engage in sexual activities. He also told detectives said he had met approximately six women for sex using Craigslist, according to  the sheriff's release.

Libertyville

Bomb Threat Closes Forest Preserve

Independence Grove Forest Preserve in Libertyville was closed this week as officials investigated a bomb threat received by the Lake County Forest Preserve.

Forest Preserves officials announced Wednesday morning that Independence Grove would be closed due to a bomb threat

Julie Kenney, public information representative for the United States Postal Inspection Service, said the threat was received by mail in a letter. She said Wednesday that investigators were "questioning a person of interest" and that nothing suspicious had been found at Independence Grove.

Evanston

Man Convicted in Keg Murder Caught With Gun

Evanston police chased down two felons on foot Tuesday afternoon and arrested them both after officers found they were carrying loaded handguns, according to police.

Blair Aikens, 27, of the 9300 block of Karlov Avenue in Skokie, and Antoine Hill, 28, of the 7400 block of North Ridge Avenue in Chicago, were both charged with two counts of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon.

Hill was recently released on parole for the murder of an Evanston man at the Keg in 2005, while Aikens was wanted on a Pennsylvania narcotics warrant, according to Evanston Police Cmdr. Jason Parrott. Aikens was also convicted of delivery of a controlled substance, a felony, in 2007.



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