A Lake Villa man was taken into custody this week on charges that he sent and received child sex abuse material via the internet, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
Nicholas J. Gillespie, 43, was arrested after police executed a search warrant at his residence Wednesday.
The search and arrest came after a two-month investigation conducted by the sheriff’s office and the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Authorities said that during the course of the investigation, Gillespie allegedly downloaded 80 gigabytes of material suspected of containing child sex abuse materials.
He has been charged with five counts of possession of the illegal material; prosecutors said additional charges may be forthcoming.
Specially trained dogs helped police locate electronics during the search, authorities said.
The sheriff’s office said that the Illinois Attorney General’s Office and the Woodstock Police aided in the investigation.
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Dry conditions and blustery winds have kept area fire departments busy battling grass and field fires in the region this week.
On Wednesday, North Chicago firefighters responded to a series of blazes that broke out along the railroad tracks along Sheridan Road. Firefighters warned motorists to stay away, and the fires also delayed the Metra commuter rail service as departments from around the region responded to aid requests for NCFD.
Grayslake Fire District personnel tackled a large fire in a marsh area that consumed two to three acres of brush. The fire was reported at about 6:45 p.m. Monday near the 2400 block of Stallion Court.
Due to the size of the fire and its proximity to nearby houses, Grayslake immediately radioed for help from surrounding departments. Firefighters were able to arrest the blaze and extinguish it within about 20 minutes, GFD said in a news release. There was no damage to structures, the district said.
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The Lake County Sheriff’s Office recently completed its second round of compliance checks at establishments that sell tobacco products. State law mandates the sale of tobacco to people aged 21 or older.
During March, the department sent underage people into the business in an attempt to buy tobacco. The compliance checks are intended to ensure that proprietors and their employees are properly asking for identification before making the sale.
In the recent campaign, 71 businesses were checked. Of those, 65 passed, but clerks at six places sold the tobacco, and they were cited. Four of those cited work at gas station convenience stores. The other businesses were a truck stop and a liquor store, police said.
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Residents of the four Round Lake communities are reminded that there will be a new telephone number going into effect for non-emergency police calls.
The current number — (847) 270-9111 – will be replaced with (847) 546-2127 as of April 1. That 546 number is already in use by Round Lake Beach residents for non-emergency police calls. But people who have been using the 270-9111 number will need to make the change.
The changes are being necessitated by the Round Lake area’s transition to the LakeComm dispatch system.
