Man faces fleeing and eluding charges after high-speed chase with police

Bond was set at $75,000 July 30 for a Cook County man accused of leading police on a 100-mph high-speed chase, authorities said.

Chevelle Carter, 31, of the 12000 block of South Ada Street, is charged with two counts of aggravated fleeing and eluding and one count of attempting to elude a peace officer, according to a DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office news release.

About 7:24 p.m. July 29, an Oak Brook officer on patrol in the Oak Brook Mall parking lot observed three individuals repeatedly entering and exiting their vehicle and entering the mall. A short time later, Oak Brook police received a call regarding multiple individuals acting suspiciously with credit cards that were repeatedly denied.

The officer then observed the same vehicle pull up near the Macy’s department store and pick up two individuals. The officer approached the vehicle in his squad car at which time the vehicle allegedly began to drive away, weaving in and out of the parking lot and striking a parked car causing a minor injury to the car’s occupant.

The officer tried to pull the car over at which time the vehicle, allegedly driven by Carter, exited the mall, ignored a red traffic light and drove east on 22nd Street. Carter allegedly drove about 100 mph on 22nd Street to York Road where he again ignored a traffic control device and headed north on York Road, again reaching a speed of about 100 mph, according to the release.

Carter allegedly traveled east on Roosevelt Road but before entering the Interstate 290 ramp he came to a stop after driving over spike strips placed by another officer. Carter and two other unidentified individuals then fled the vehicle on foot. A short time later, police took Carter into custody.

When police searched the vehicle, they recovered a Smith and Wesson 9mm firearm and two Glock 9mm firearms. All three guns were loaded, and the Smith and Wesson was reported stolen out of Indiana. Through their investigation, authorities learned Carter had a fugitive warrant out of Lake County, Indiana, for probation violation on vehicle theft charges.

All three weapons recovered have been sent to the DuPage County Crime Lab for analysis.

“What I find extremely troubling about this recent epidemic of people fleeing from the police is that we had two cases this past weekend involving a defendant allegedly fleeing from police that caused injury to an innocent person,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in the release. “We are all very thankful that the injury sustained by the innocent man in the parked car does not appear to be serious. This phenomenon of ignoring the police and putting innocent motorists in harm’s way must stop before someone gets killed.”

“The Oak Brook Police Department is 100% committed to keeping our community safe,” Oak Brook Chief of Police Brian Strockis said in the release. “Police pursuits are extremely dangerous but it’s also dangerous for criminals to believe that there are no consequences for their actions. If you come to Oak Brook to commit a crime, you will be caught, arrested, charged and prosecuted. Our detectives are working hard to identify the others involved in this incident and they will be brought to justice.”

Carter’s next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 28 for arraignment.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Jason Wood with the Oak Brook Police Department at 630-68-8750.