Murder defendant possessed shank, lewdly exposed himself: cops

A Joliet man in jail since February on murder charges has since racked up additional charges accusing him of possessing a 5-inch aluminum shank and lewdly exposing himself to a female guard.

Derrell Draper, 38, who was charged with killing of a co-worker, Robert Bigger, 30, of Shorewood, now faces new charges of public indecency and possession of a contraband in a penal institution.

The public indecency charge stems from an incident on May 29 at the Will County jail.

A guard reported that Draper had “exposed himself to the female correctional officer and then made several lewd comments towards her,” Will County sheriff spokeswoman Kathy Hoffmeyer said.

Draper was charged on June 24 with “knowingly” exposing himself “in a lewd manner with the intent to arouse or satisfy” his sexual desire, court records show.

Draper refused to appear in court on the same day he was charged with the offense, court records show. He also refused to appear in court on May 28 for a pretrial hearing in the murder case.

On Sunday, deputies were called to the jail to take a report of contraband that was found in the facility, Hoffmeyer said.

Guards reported that while Draper was being prepared to move to another unit within the jail, he was found to have concealed a “homemade shank in his undergarments,” Hoffmeyer said.

“The shank was made from aluminum and was about 5 inches long,” Hoffmeyer said.

Guards took possession of the makeshift weapon and Draper was charged with possession contraband in a penal institution, she said.

On Monday, Draper’s bond was increased to $6 million. He now needs to post $600,000 for his release from jail.

Draper was arrested by Elwood police following the investigation of Bigger’s death on Feb. 26.

Bigger and Draper worked together at the Home Depot warehouse in the village, Elwood Police Chief Fred Hayes said. Draper was captured at the Justice home of his girlfriend, he said.