NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Police reports
• ELMWOOD – An Elmwood-area man was accused of threatening to use a drill bit to stab someone.
Russell M. Varnell, 51, was arrested following the incident. It happened shortly before 6:30 p.m. Dec. 27 at a residence in the 2300 block of Illinois Route 8, according to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report.
The victim, a 33-year-old Canton man, said he was remodeling the kitchen at his cousin’s residence when Varnell began to argue with him. A physical fight ensued and continued outside. A Milwaukee-brand impact drill with a 6-inch bit was the weapon, according to the victim, who sustained minor injuries.
When asked what happened, Varnell said he hit his head on a trailer in the driveway. He was transported to the Knox County Jail in Galesburg, then to OSF Saint Mary Medical Center for observation. Varnell was charged with battery and aggravated assault.
• WEST PEORIA – A traffic stop in West Peoria led to a Farmington man’s arrest on various charges.
Scott E. Garretts, 44, was driving shortly before midnight Dec. 30 when an Illinois State Police trooper pulled him over near Kansas Street and Lehman Road. He was found to have an active Peoria County warrant regarding non-consensual dissemination of a sexual image, according to state police.
Garretts also was accused of driving on a suspended license, expired vehicle registration and operating an uninsured motor vehicle. He was transported to the Peoria County Jail.
• PRINCEVILLE – A Kewanee woman required hospital attention following a single-vehicle accident east of Princeville.
Jessica D. Smith was driving a westbound 2014 Jeep Wrangler shortly after 6:45 p.m. Dec. 30 on Illinois routes 90 and 91 when at Rice Road she heard a loud, popping sound, a Peoria Conty Sheriff’s Office report stated.
Smith lost control of the vehicle, which rolled into an east-side ditch. It appeared a passenger-side tire fell off the axle. An ambulance transported Smith to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria to be treated for pelvic and right-leg pain. The vehicle sustained disabling damage and was towed.
• BELLEVUE – No injuries were reported following a two-vehicle accident in Bellevue that involved a Farmington man.
David P. Bohanan was driving a southbound 2005 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck shortly before 3:30 p.m. Dec. 29 on Maxwell Road when at Plank Road it sideswiped a 2022 Ford Transit van that was preparing to turn right, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report.
Chad DeRenzy of Canton was the other driver. Both vehicles sustained minor damage and were drivable.
• BRIMFIELD – A Dunlap woman was accused of drunken driving following a single-vehicle wreck near Brimfield.
Shortly before 9 p.m. Dec. 25, Laurie M. Stoller was driving a 2019 Infiniti QX5 north in the 7500 block of N. Maher Rd. when she became lost and attempted to turn around. She backed into a ditch and the vehicle struck barbed wire, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report.
The vehicle sustained driver’s-side damage and was towed. A separate report regarding Stoller’s drunken-driving arrest was heavily redacted. BYE Ambulance Service and Brimfield firefighters responded, but Stoller declined medical treatment.
• OAK HILL – A Laura man was cited for multiple offenses after his vehicle crashed into a ditch west of Oak Hill.
The accident happened shortly before 4:30 a.m. Dec. 25 on Pulsifer Road at Illinois Route 8, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. Mason D. Johnson said he lost control of a 2026 Chevrolet Impala, which ended up facing east in the ditch. A deputy noted west-to-east tire tracks in a nearby field.
He was accused of failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, improper lane use and having open alcohol in his vehicle, although he didn’t appear impaired or injured and denied drinking.
• FARMINGTON – A non-functional headlight resulted in a Norris woman being detained on a Fulton County warrant.
Katherine J. Siglar, 43, was driving a 2024 Kia shortly before 8:15 p.m. Dec. 23 when a Farmington police officer stopped her on South Main Street because of the headlight issue. A check revealed Siglar was wanted for contempt of court, according to a police report.
After Siglar paid $130 in bond and fees, she was given a new court date and released.
• FARMINGTON – A Farmington-area man fled a traffic stop in a side-by-side vehicle, and a companion in another vehicle was wanted in Fulton County.
Dennis C. Kingsley, 62, was driving the side-by-side shortly after 9 a.m. Dec. 23 in the 600 block of N. Main St. when a Farmington police officer noticed the vehicle did not have a city sticker. He stopped the side-by-side near Knox Road 2300 East and Knox Road 50 North, according to a police report.
A vehicle following the side-by-side, driven by 51-year-old Margaret E. Venzon of Farmington, also stopped. After the officer told Kingsley to wait, he reboarded the side-by-side and continued north on Road 2300 East to his residence. He said he believed the stop was completed.
Venzon was found to have an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in court on a 2025 charge of driving with a suspended license. She was arrested and transported to the Fulton County Jail in Lewistown. Kingsley was cited for driving with a license revoked in 2013.
• BARTONVILLE – A traffic stop in Bartonville resulted in a Trivoli woman’s arrest on various illegal-drugs charges.
Alicia L. Phillips, 35, was driving a 1998 Chevrolet Blazer erratically when a Bartonville police officer pulled it over shortly before 2:15 p.m. Dec. 21 in the 5400 block of W. Monroe Rd., according to a police report. A large, clear bag of marijuana was found on the passenger seat.
Further investigation revealed two smoking devices and a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine. Phillips was accused of possession of meth, a hypodermic needle and drug paraphernalia and was transported to the Peoria County Jail.
• EDWARDS – Shortly after 8:15 p.m. Dec. 26, Austin J. Deroo of Homewood was driving a westbound 2026 Chevrolet Trailblazer in the 11900 block of Illinois Route 8 west of Edwards when the vehicle struck a deer. Deroo was uninjured, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. The vehicle sustained front-end damage but was drivable.
• BRIMFIELD – Shortly after 7 p.m. Dec. 26, Kimberly R. Lenaway of Williamsfield was driving a westbound 2023 Chevrolet Trailblazer in the 19500 block of U.S. Route 150 near Brimfield when the vehicle struck a deer that emerged from the north. Lenaway declined medical attention, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. The vehicle was drivable, although it sustained dents on its driver’s-side front panel.
• KICKAPOO – Shortly before 5:45 p.m. Dec. 21, Grant M. Hunt of Princeville was driving a northbound 2007 Toyota Camry in the 10900 block of N. Princeville-Jubilee Rd. north of Kickapoo when the vehicle struck a deer that emerged from the east. Hunt and his passenger, a male, declined medical attention, according to a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. The vehicle was drivable, although it sustained major front-end damage.
• GALESBURG – These were among calls to which the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded between Jan. 4-10: suspicious incident, Yates City; alarm, Farmington.
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