Crime & Safety

Police Blotter: Drunken Drivers Nabbed on New Year's Eve

New Lenox police reports, Dec. 30 to Jan. 2.

MONDAY, JAN. 2

Cars Burglarized

Two residents reported items missing from their cars. A purse was stolen from a car parked in the 2400 block of East Joliet Highway after the car's window was shattered. Someone also shattered the window to a car in the 1300 block of North Cedar Road and stole a wallet.

Property Damage

Another window was shattered on a car parked in the 1300 block of North Cedar Road, but nothing was reported stolen.

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Phone Harassment

A resident in the 1000 block of South Cedar Road said a known offender was making repeated calls and text messages to a cell phone.

License Violation

  • Jose A. Fuentes, 33, of Joliet, was ticketed for driving without a valid license and driving without insurance.

SUNDAY, JAN. 1

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DUI Charges

  • Joseph A. Leal, 54, of Chicago Heights, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, driving without insurance and speeding. Police said Leal was driving too fast for the rainy weather. He was taken to Will County Jail. 
  • John M. Stercay, 22, of the 700 block of Schoolgate Road in New Lenox, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding and driving without insurance. Police stopped Stercay Gougar and Maple roads at about 2:20 a.m. and he ws released after posting bond.

License Violations

  • Kelly A. O'Keefe, 38, of the 700 block of Sandpiper Drive in New Lenox, was ticketed for the failure to yield and driving without insurance or a valid license.
  • Christopher T. Auld, 28, of Crest Hill, was ticketed for driving with expired registration and without a valid license or insurance.
  • Eloy Sosa, 23, of Joliet, was ticketed for driving with a suspended license and without insurance.
  • Eduardo Arcos, 20, of Joliet, was ticketed for driving with a suspended license and without insurance.
  • Rogelio Ibarra, 31, of Joliet, was ticketed for driving without headlights or a valid license.

SATURDAY, DEC. 31

Retail Theft

Someone stole a cell phone from a display case in the Verizon Wireless store at 2510 E. Lincoln Hwy.

DUI Charge

Ivan Astorga, 25, of Joliet, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, leaving a hit-and-run accident, driving without insurance and speeding. Police responded to a hit-and-run accident at Route 6 and Interstate 355. No one in the other car was injured, police said. Astorga was tracked down near Gougar Road and Route 30, where police determined he was under the influence. Astorga was taken to Will County Jail.

License Violations

  • Michael A. Sapp, 23, of Joliet, was ticketed for driving with a suspended license and driving without insurance after police randomly ran his license plates near Route 30 and Prairie Road.
  • Ismael Jimenez, 33, of Joliet, was ticketed for driving with a suspended license and driving without insurance after police randomly ran his license plates near Schoolhouse Road and Route 30.

Police blotter information is provided by the . Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to . We will verify and report the outcome. If you have information about an unsolved crime, call the Investigations Unit at 815-462-6100.


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