NOTE: Charges are merely an accusation. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Police reports
• PEORIA – A local man was accused of impersonating a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office deputy, including pulling over a driver and destroying his license.
Dennis Walker, 43, was charged June 4 with false personation of a police officer in connection with an incident that happened May 27 in the 5800 block of W. Plank Rd. in Bellevue, according to the Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office.
The victim said Walker was driving an unmarked Ford Explorer with red and blue lights mounted on the dashboard and was dressed in law-enforcement attire. He told the victim his driver’s license was suspended, although it wasn’t, then cut it in half and tried to issue a handwritten citation.
Following an argument with the victim, Walker fled. A subsequent search of his residence revealed uniforms, badges, tactical gear and a rifle. Walker also was accused of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.
• PRINCEVILLE – An apparent gift-card scam was reported at a Princeville business.
A Peoria Conty Sheriff’s Office deputy was dispatched about 2 p.m. May 22 to Dollar General, 1107 N. Santa Fe Ave., after a Princeville man complained about a problem with the gift cards. None of them had value, according to a heavily redacted Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report.
The report did not list how many gift cards were invalid. No suspect information was available.
• BELLEVUE – A pair of Farmington men appeared to be uninjured following a two-vehicle wreck near Bellevue.
Michael M. Pearson was driving an eastbound 2004 Mitsubishi Lancer shortly before 10:30 a.m. May 18 on Farmington Road when it slid on wet pavement near Hilltop Road and rear-ended a stopped 2021 Ford Escape, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated.
Stephen L. Benedict was the other driver. He said he stopped because of a felled tree in the roadway. Both vehicles were drivable.
• YATES CITY – A Farmington woman had a blood-alcohol content above the legal limit following a single-vehicle accident south of Yates City.
Violet J. Solomon, 21, was driving a 2000 Land Rover Discovery sport-utility vehicle that rolled over shortly before 5:30 a.m. May 17 at Knox roads 2300 East and 250 North, according to a Knox County Sheriff’s Office report.
Solomon said she was swerving from lane to lane to be silly. Her BAC was .139. The legal limit is .08. Solomon also had no valid driver’s license. She was transported to OSF Saint Mary Medical Center in Galesburg, then to the Knox County Jail.
A 23-year-old Peoria man who was Solomon’s passenger appeared sober and uninjured. Solomon was accused of driving under the influence of alcohol, reckless driving, driving in the wrong lane and operating a vehicle without a valid license. The vehicle sustained damage and was towed.
• BRIMFIELD – A fire destroyed a garage and a pickup truck, among other items, at a property north of Brimfield.
The fire in the 19000 block of W. Martin Rd. began shortly before 10 p.m. May 16, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. The homeowner said he was inside his house when he noticed the southwest side of the detached garage was ablaze.
An attempt to use a garden hose to douse the flames was futile. The homeowner said he was burning items in a barrel about two hours before the fire. The burn barrel was about 20 feet west of the garage. A 2001 Chevrolet Silverado was parked inside.
The fire cause was unknown. No damage estimate was available. The Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal was to investigate. Firefighters from the Akron-Princeville, Brimfield, Elmwood, Dunlap, Limestone and Logan-Trivoli departments responded, as did BYE Ambulance Service.
• ELMWOOD – An Elmwood man was arrested after he hit a police officer, according to authorities.
Austin E. Foster, 31, was accused of aggravated battery and disorderly conduct following the incident. It happened about 11 a.m. May 12 outside a residence in the 400 block of E. Main St., according to an Elmwood police report.
The man’s mother requested officers check her relatives because of trouble they were having with Foster. He was outside the residence when police arrived. He was noncompliant and left the area on foot. Officers found nobody inside the residence.
Shortly after that, Foster ran back toward the officers and struck one in the shoulder. Another officer fired his taser at Foster, who fell on the grass. He said he was uninjured. Foster was transported to the Peoria County Jail. Brimfield firefighters and BYE Ambulance Service also responded.
• KICKAPOO – A dryer fire resulted in minimal damage to a residence west of Kickapoo.
The fire in the 14000 block of W. Schlink Rd. was reported shortly before noon May 12, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. The homeowner said she was doing laundry and after about two minutes of dryer use, she smelled smoke. When she looked in the dryer, she saw clothes on fire.
Everybody evacuated the residence safely, and nobody required medical attention. Brimfield and Elmwood firefighters responded, as did BYE Ambulance. A cat was treated for smoke inhalation.
• PEORIA – A Hanna City woman was accused of drunken driving following a single-vehicle accident in Peoria.
Illinois State Police responded shortly before 2 a.m. May 8 to Monroe and Spalding avenues, where a vehicle had struck a power pole. The driver, 33-year-old Mackenzie R. Layman, was standing near the vehicle. Layman was charged with two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol and was transported to the Peoria County Jail.
• HANNA CITY – Someone stole two 750-milliliter bottles of Seagram’s whiskey from a Hanna City convenience store, according to authorities. The shoplifting at Casey’s, 13032 W. Farmington Rd., was reported shortly after 9:30 a.m. May 7, according to a heavily redacted Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report. The incident happened about 5:45 p.m. May 5.
Among the redactions was the name of a suspect. He was driving a Chevrolet Malibu.
• PEORIA – An Edelstein man was accused of harboring a stolen pickup truck and reaping parts from it. Ronnie L.R. Bodtke, 42, was arrested May 7 following an investigation by Illinois Secretary of State Police. The vehicle, a 2005 Ford F-150, was located at a residence in the 1500 block of S. Easton Ave. that belonged to Bodtke’s late father, a Secretary of State Police report stated.
The pickup truck was reported stolen April 25. No location was listed. The truck was valued at $9,900. Bodtke said the truck just appeared at the residence, and he denied removing truck parts. He was charged with unlawful possession of a stolen vehicle and transported to the Peoria County Jail.
• EDWARDS – At 7:30 p.m. May 20, Alexandra E. Queen of Edwards was driving a westbound 2026 Honda HR-V on Interstate 474 near the Interstate 74 interchange east of Edwards when the vehicle struck a deer. Queen was uninjured, a Peoria County Sheriff’s Office report stated. The vehicle sustained major damage to its front passenger-side bumper.
• FARMINGTON – Rowdy G. Eldridge, 21, of Farmington was arrested at 10 a.m. May 20 regarding a 2025 accusation of aggravated use of a communications device/bodily harm, according to the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office.
• BRIMFIELD – Osvaldo A. Nieves Alarcon, 31, of Brimfield turned himself in shortly before 11 a.m. May 14 at the Knox County Jail in Galesburg regarding a warrant for driving with a suspended license, according to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.
• FARMINGTON – Lucas K. Price, 44, of Farmington was arrested shortly before 8:15 p.m. May 8 in the zero block of N. Hedden Ave. regarding an unspecified, outstanding Fulton County warrant, according to a Farmington police report. Police transported Price to the Fulton County Jail in Lewistown.
• ELMWOOD – Chief Aaron Bean reported the following Elmwood Police Department activity for May: three arrests, three traffic stops, six warnings, nine reports and one ordinance violation.
• FARMINGTON – Chief Chris Darsham reported the following Farmington Police Department activity for May: 328 business checks, 3,367 building checks, one crash handled, one property crime, nine traffic tickets, five ordinance violations, two crimes against people, three miscellaneous, 58 traffic stops, three total arrests, seven reports, 357 total calls and 12 calls to assist other police departments.
• GALESBURG – These were among calls to which the Knox County Sheriff’s Office responded between May 17-30: driving complaint, Yates City; fire, Dahinda; open door, Williamsfield; driving complaint, Dahinda; suspicious incident, Dahinda; dispute, Yates City; dispute, Dahinda; domestic dispute, Dahinda; order violation, Yates City.
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