Lake County man threatens roommate over microwave, makes fake 911 call to evade K9s
INGLESIDE, Ill. - A north suburban man who threatened his roommate with a knife over the use of their microwave is now being held in the Lake County Jail.
Lake County Sheriff's deputies were called to a residence in the 24800 block of West Crabtree Lake in Ingleside around 10:15 p.m. Thursday night for a report of a man threatening his roommate with a knife, Deputy Chief Chris Covelli said in a statement.
The victim told responding deputies that his roommate, 30-year-old Sebastian Homuth, flew into a rage after he discovered the victim was using the microwave, the statement said.
Homuth allegedly grabbed a large kitchen knife and chased the victim, who locked himself in his bedroom before calling 911.
[L-R] K9 Danno and K9 Odin
After informing deputies Homuth was still inside the apartment, authorities were forced to evacuate other residents of the building due to Homuth's erratic behavior.
When attempts to communicate with Homuth went unanswered, deputies discovered Homuth had already fled the building through an unnoticed exit.
K9s from the Lake County Sheriff's Office were brought in, and tracked Homuth for over a mile through the Grant Woods Forest Preserve. Covelli said Homuth believed deputies were closing in on him, so he made a fake 911 call to report an attack at the opposite end of the forest preserve in an attempt to mislead authorities.
Dispatchers determined the 911 caller was in fact Homuth, so they kept him talking on the phone while they narrowed in on his location.
When sheriff's K9's Danno and Odin located Homuth a short time later, he became argumentative and initially refused to turn himself in.
Dispatchers finally convinced Homuth to surrender, and when he did, one of the canines was released to apprehend him, Covelli said in the statement.
Homuth was taken to the Lake County Jail, where he remains in custody. Covelli said Homuth is currently refusing to go through the booking process at the jail, and will be held in the Lake County Jail until he is booked.
After he is booked, Covelli said Homuth will appear in court on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, misuse of 911, and resisting a peace officer.
"Behind every sheriff’s response is a sheriff’s emergency telecommunicator who goes above and beyond, tirelessly coordinating the response with precision and care," Sheriff John D. Idleburg said in a statement. "This is the second time in just a couple of days that our sheriff’s telecommunicators and sheriff’s canine teams collaborated to apprehend a fleeing suspect in our community."