By ANDREA POTEET
Sunday Times Newspapers
RIVERVIEW – A suspect in an Illinois stabbing involving a shovel was arrested here Nov. 23.
The 24-year-old homeless man was arrested about 8:45 a.m. while attempting to enter Chase Bank, 17800 Fort St., while wearing a full face mask.
Riverview Police Lt. Joseph Jakubus said police are unsure whether the man was attempting to rob the bank, but the mask gave them probable cause to stop him.
“We don’t know that for sure,” Jakubus said. “He had no weapon on him. He said he was (at the bank because he was) looking for a cigarette.”
He was “deceptive” about his identity, according to a police report. A live scan search then revealed the man was wanted for attempted murder and aggravated assault in connection with a Nov. 18 incident in Berwyn, Ill., in which a man was stabbed with a shovel. Police there are still seeking a second suspect.
The man told police he spent Thanksgiving night in a Detroit parking garage before hitchhiking south on Fort Street to Riverview. Police believe he left the Chicago area the day of the incident, heading east on Interstate 94.
He has prior arrests in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and Illinois.
Riverview police have been in contact with neighboring police departments in search of information about crimes in which the man may also be a suspect, but none have been reported.
No weapons were found on the man, who is known to carry a knife, according to the report. He also is believed to sometimes dress as a woman, use female street names, and follow the band Insane Clown Posse from state to state.
He was being held at the Wayne County Jail pending extradition to Berwyn Wednesday.
Berwyn police officials did not return phone calls seeking comment by press time.