1.15.25 – Desplaines Valey – by Carol Mcgowan
Summit police have made their second successful arrest thanks in large part to the department’s drone.
Police responded to the Pick-n-Pull property at 6800 W. 61st Place shortly after 2 a.m. on January 3 for a call of intruders.
Officers were informed that security cameras on the property had observed two intruders in the lot.
Officers deployed the department’s drone to provide a bird’s eye view of the property and assist in locating the intruders.
The drone spotted two subjects on the property and they began to elude officers when they heard them approaching.
The two subjects split up. One was able to make his escape, but the second suspect was stopped in the 7700 block of West 62nd Street by an officer who took him into custody without incident.
That subject was identified as Luis Jose Garcia, 36, of Chicago. He was subsequently charged with criminal damage to property and criminal trespass to property.
Garcia was cited and released later that day with a pending court date.
Summit police said this was the second arrest made with the assistance of the police drone at the Pick-n-Pull location.
Back in September, the drones helped catch another burglar in the early morning hours at the same location.
That suspect was ultimately caught under a railcar while trying to hide from police.
Summit Police Chief Mel Ortiz says the drones are a great resource for his department to have.
“Not only have they helped in locating offenders, but they have also been used in locating a missing person with mental health issues in a wooded area in the overnight hours,” he said.