Author: Paul Stukel

Aurora firefighters saved a horse from a burning barn off Sheffer Road in Aurora Friday morning. At approximately 6:50am Friday, the Aurora Fire Department responded to a first-alarm fire at a structure in the 1600 block of Sheffer Road, where they found a pole barn with fire showing but no nearby structures threatened. The initial response included two engine companies, one truck company, one medic unit, and one chief officer, totaling 12 personnel. Firefighters quickly deployed an attack line to suppress the fire and, due to the large amounts of hay and tires stored in the structure, extensive overhaul operations…

A North Aurora man has been convicted of murdering two women in a gang-related shooting in 2020. This afternoon, Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis announced that 31-year-old James Brown Jr., of North Aurora, was found guilty after a four-day jury trial last week on two separate charges of First-Degree Murder. The jury found Brown guilty after just 3 hours of deliberation. According to prosecutors, at around 11:00am on Veteran’s Day 2020, fourteen shots were fired by Brown into a house in the Boulder Hill subdivision of Oswego Township. Inside the residence were six individuals, two of which, Cassandra and…

Geneva police are investigating a rash of car burglaries reported early Thursday morning. Nearly 20 vehicles were reported burglarized. In a press release, police indicated the burglaries occurred at the following locations: Officers responded to the area and identified a possible suspicious vehicle, a white 1999 Ford Explorer, bearing Illinois license plate registration ET97912. The vehicle fled from the area when officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop. Due to a department policy prohibiting pursuit when only a property crime is involved, officers did not chase the fleeing vehicle. Investigators are working to locate the Ford Explorer and to identify…

Oswego police are seeking two men suspected of robbing a liquor store at knifepoint Tuesday evening. At approximately 10:31 pm Tuesday, police were dispatched to 1154 Douglas Road for a report of an armed robbery that had already occurred. It was reported that two men wearing ski masks entered the southside store entrance, produced a knife and stole an undisclosed amount of U.S. currency and liquor. The suspects left the store and were last seen heading in a southeast direction from the entrance. Police immediately conducted a search of the area, using both K9 and drone resources, without success. Police…

A tip from a sharp-eyed Naperville resident led to the arrest of a Chicago man on felony gun charges Sunday evening. At approximately 9:40pm on Sunday, Febrary 9, Naperville Police were dispatched to the 1600 block of Westminster Drive for a report of a suspicious vehicle. The caller reported that the vehicle was parked on the wrong side of the street and that the headlights were being turned on and off. After an officer located the suspicious vehicle and made contact with the driver, he observed fresh cannabis in plain view inside the vehicle, which led to the discovery of…

A 59-year-old man was tragically killed in a single-vehicle accident on Naperville’s south side Monday evening. According to a press release, at approximately 9:37pm Monday, Naperville police and fire personnel responded to the intersection of 103rd Street and Book Road in Naperville for a report of a traffic crash with injuries, where they discovered a blue 2008 Infiniti G35 in the back yard of a residence approximately 100 feet east of the T-intersection. The driver of the Infiniti, identified as Patrick M. Larkin, a 59-year-old male from Naperville, was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced deceased. The…

Three suspects are in custody after allegedly stealing thousands of dollars of beauty products from ULTA Beauty in Naperville last week. Naperville police were dispatched to the ULTA Beauty store located in the 2700 block of Aurora Avenue for a report of a retail theft in progress, where they learned that the suspect was allegedly seen concealing merchandise in his clothing prior to fleeing from the store without paying. The caller, an employee, provided the dispatcher with a detailed description of the suspect. Officers searched the area, locating a subject matching the description inside a nearby vehicle, along with two…

Batavia police are investigating a traffic incident Tuesday that resulted in a pedestrian being hospitalized after being struck by a semi-truck. At approximately 5:30pm Tuesday, police were dispatched to the intersection of Kirk Road and East Wilson Street for a traffic crash in which a pedestrian was struck by a semi-truck pulling a trailer. When police arrived, the pedestrian was conscious. The pedestrian was subsequently transported to a local hospital for treatment and as of the most recent update, was in stable condition. Due to the seriousness of the injuries, the Kane County Accident Reconstruction Team was requested and responded…

A 22-year-old Wheaton woman has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for her role in the savage murder of an 18-year-old West Chicago man in 2018. Following a four-day sentencing hearing, DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin announced Tuesday that Judge Brian Telander sentenced Tia Brewer, formerly of Wheaton, to forty years in the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) for her role in the 2018 murder of Luis Guerrero, 18, of West Chicago. Brewer had previously entered a plea of guilty to one count of First-Degree Murder and one count of Aggravated Kidnapping (Class X Felony). The State had…

A 32-year-old Aurora man is dead after he lost control of his vehicle on Route 59 early Sunday morning and slammed into a light pole. According to a release from the Aurora Police Department, the crash occurred on Sunday morning at approximately 3:45am near the intersection of Illinois Route 59 and Meridian Parkway. Preliminary information indicates that a white 2018 Jaguar XE driven by the victim was traveling southbound on Route 59 when he lost control of the vehicle just south of Meridian Parkway. The Jaguar veered off the roadway and struck a light pole on the west side of…