NEWS RELEASE

RIVERSIDE POLICE DEPARTMENT 31 Riverside Road, Riverside, IL 60546

23 February 2014
Contact:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Chief Thomas Weitzel
tweitzel@riverside.il.us

708.447.2127

Follow RPD on Twitter @pdriverside

RIVERSIDE POLICE MAKE ARREST IN FALSE SHOOTING CASE AT HIGH SCHOOL

Police have charged a Brookfield resident with felony disorderly conduct which caused major police response

On Friday, February 21, at 8:00 p.m., the Riverside Police took into custody a 19 year-old Brookfield resident on charges of disorderly conduct. Earlier on Friday, the Brookfield Police Department received a phone call of a specific threat that there would be a shooting at Riverside Brookfield High School and the caller named the possible shooter in the message. Brookfield Police immediately notified Riverside Police and both agencies developed an emergency response plan for the high school. The plan, which had already been practiced many times over the past several years, was put into effect immediately. After consultation with the school, the school was put into soft lockdown. A soft lockdown is a situation where no students, staff, parents or vendors are allowed inside or outside the building without police escort. Additionally, all exterior doors are locked, students remain in their classroom, and other security measures are taken that the police will currently not release for security purposes. An exit plan for dismissal time was then initiated by the Riverside Police Department. Riverside requested mutual aide assistance from the Brookfield Police Department, Brookfield Zoo Police Department, Lyons Police Department, North Riverside Police Department and the Cook County Sheriff's Police Department. Additionally, Riverside put all their personnel at the school, including the entire day shift and calling in the afternoon shift to ensure that we could safely empty the school at dismissal time so police could continue their investigation. The dismissal went off with no problems and the school was cleared by 3:30 p.m.

Riverside Police were then given a copy of the audio recording from the Brookfield Police Department and the investigation started. First, police were able to track down the individual who was named as the possible shooter. He was located at his grandmother's residence in Maywood and it was determined that he had no participation in this incident whatsoever. He had been set up by a former Riverside Brookfield High School student. During the course of the investigation, police learned of Facebook postings and were able to determine that there had been a disagreement over a drug rip-off. Police then played the tapes for officers and they recognized the voice on the tape from prior arrests and encounters with the caller/suspect. Riverside Police also played the tape for the individual named as the shooter and he also confirmed that the voice was an ex friend of his. Acting on this information, Riverside Police went to an address in Brookfield in an attempt to pick up the suspect. Initially, there was no answer at the door. Shortly after Riverside Police left the address, the father of the suspect surrendered his son to Riverside Police. The defendant, who gave a full confession, stated the following. He had been upset because of a drug rip-off that had taken place within the past several weeks. This drug rip-off had taken place in Brookfield, but had never been reported to police. Wanting to get revenge, the suspect then placed the false call to the Brookfield Police Department naming a suspect as a possible shooter in retaliation. The intent of the offender was to bring a great deal of focus on another individual who had been involved in the drug rip-off and thereby police would either arrest him as a suspect or focus in on him which would cause a disruption in his lifestyle. After consultation with the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, Riverside Police charged the individual with two counts of felony disorderly conduct. The first felony disorderly conduct was for transmitting a false report of a violent act to police, and the second charge of felony disorderly conduct was for transmitting a false report of a violent act which required a massive police response. Charged in this case with two counts of felony disorderly conduct was Nicholas J. Sikorski, 18 of the 3800 block of Blanchan Avenue in Brookfield. Mr. Sikorski is a former Riverside Brookfield High School student who never graduated. Riverside Police Chief, Thomas Weitzel stated, "Officers worked all night long on this case until they apprehended the suspect so that we could ensure that students and staff would be safe on Monday morning at Riverside Brookfield High School. As stated by the defendant, this entire situation stemmed over a drug rip-off. Chief Weitzel went on to say, "I am extremely grateful for the assistance and immediate response of our neighboring police agencies. As is the case in many recent criminal acts, the heart of the problem in this case stemmed back to drugs."

Riverside Police did provide increased security presence at the nighttime basketball games at Riverside Brookfield High School on Friday. Police will be at the high school Monday morning to ensure a safe drop-off. At no time was any student or staff member actually in immediate danger. What was unusual in this case is that the caller named a specific suspect in an anonymous phone describing targeting a violent act at the high school which increased the level of police response. Chief Weitzel specifically wanted to thank Brookfield police officers for their immediate response and evidence collection of the audiotape of the phone call which ultimately led to the arrest. The Riverside Police Department will be seeking reimbursement for the cost of the police response from the offender. The dollar amount for response will be determined at a later date when all case work is completed. The individual who was named in the phone tip as the shooter had no part in this incident. He is a former student that now lives in Maywood. Mr. Sikorskis bond was set at $75.000 at central bond court on Saturday.

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