Driver Points Gun At Car Repossession Man

Walter Riddle, 54, of the 8300 block of Ozanam, was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, a Class 3 felony and false personation of a police officer, a Class 3 felony, after an incident Oct. 26 just before 2 a.m. when two men arrived in the driveway of his home to repossess a vehicle.

Victim No. 1, the repossession agent, a 41-year-old Willowbrook man, told police he was in the driveway of the offender’s house getting ready to repossess the vehicle when the offender came out of his house and angrily said, "you're not taking my car."

The victim was in the vehicle, a 2004 Black GMC SUV when Riddle opened the driver’s door to the vehicle and started striking the victim to get him out of the car, according to the police report.

The victim said he struck the offender with his flashlight on the arm in order to exit the vehicle, according to the report. Police said that, according to the victim, the offender went into the garage and removed a handgun from the trunk of his motorcycle and pointed it at him and Victim No. 2, a 32-year-old Villa Park man, who accompanied the repossession agent, and yelled, "get the (expletive) off my property."

Next, Riddle went into his home and came back out to move the vehicle into the garage. While Riddle was driving the vehicle, he accelerated fast and struck Victim No. 1 on the right side of his body; Victim No. 1 said he was not hurt by it.

The victims told Riddle they were caling the police, and he replied, "well, I'm a cop" and displayed a key chain/mini Cook County Sheriff badge and went back inside his home.

Police handcuffed Riddle and checked his wallet for ID. It yielded an employee ID for Cook County with the title Mechanical Assistant and another employee ID for Cook County with the title Cook County Sheriff Deputy Sheriff.

Police checked a database and learned Riddle doe not have a Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) card for his handgun. They secured the gun, which had a partially loaded magazine, but no bullet in the chamber.

Police contacted an assistant state's attorney, who advised a detective needed to interview the victims and witnesses. They were interviewed that night, and charges filed at 1:20 a.m. the next morning.

Man drives on sidewalk, police say; charged with DUI

Nelson Lovera, 38, of Niles was charged with DUI Oct. 27 at 3:20 a.m., after police said they observed him swerving his vehicle in the 8100 block of Milwaukee Avenue and driving onto the sidewalk in the 8000 block of Milwaukee Avenue. Police said they observed an odor of alcohol on his breath and that he had bloodshot and glassy eyes. His court date is Dec. 12 in the Skokie branch of the Cook County courts.

Information is taken from Niles Police Department reports.

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