The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
by Dessa Rodeffer, Quill Publisher
A task force is responsible for answers to a rash of burglaries including a recent break-in at Southern High School, and possibly the answer to a stolen mini-van in Biggsville on the same evening.
According to Henderson County Sheriff Mark Lumbeck, three warrants are being prepared by Henderson County State's Attorney David Vancil for the arrest of three teenagers in connection with the Southern High School burglary for three individuals already arrested in Fulton County
A safe was recovered, found in Warren County, he said, and authorities are checking to see if it was, in fact, the one taken from Southern High School.
In the same evening or early morning hours of the SHS break-in, a van was reported stolen from the home of Toni Brueck in Biggsville.
According to the Peoria Journal Star newspaper report, a rash of unsolved burglaries for three months (45 break-ins on businesses and vehicles from Sept. thru Dec.) caused six counties to form a task force.
"The Burglary Task Force" made up of 15 officers from Peoria, Farmington, Galesburg, Bushnell, Mason City, Fairview, and the sheriff's departments in Fulton, Knox and Mason counties put their expertise together to focus on solving the rash of crimes.
Chief Police in Canton, Mike Elam, was reported to have organized the first meeting of the task force.
By late December, eight arrests had been made from the age of 16 to 19, most from Farmington and neighboring towns.
Arrested in Fulton and Mason counties are 19-year-old Farmington youths: Daniel Nelson, John Rose, and Christopher Sollenberger, along with Jacob Hurst, 19, Yates City, Tyler McCoy, 19 of Glasford, Tyler Nelson, 19 of DeSoto, Chad Puckett, 17 of Hanna City and 16-year-old Juvenile from Yates City.
A suspicious vehicle in a small town of Mason City around 3 a.m. is what gave the police their first arrests of McCoy, Rose, and the 16-year old.
According to unconfirmed reports, officals ran a check on an unfamilar car behind a Mason City business and found it was stolen and a service station had been burglarized. McCoy was arrested and a cash register from the gas station was found in the car.
Rose escaped on foot and was arrested later, and the juvenile was easily spotted with his black skin in a predominately white area.
With three suspects in custody the six counties had apparently solved the rash of break-ins and auto thefts within a few days. The success of the findings has been credited to the counties working together.
Sheriff Lumbeck said that a news release would soon be put together annoucing the warrants for those involved.
The group are said to be responsible for stealing thousands of dollars from stores in Canton, Banner, Norris, Middlegrove, Farmington, Fairview, and stole a vehicle in London Mills later setting it on fire, Spoon River Valley School twice, ROWVA school twice and Williamsfield HS twice, Yates City, Galesburg, two stolen vehicles in Knox County, Southern School once in Henderson County, in Mc Donough, a Bushnell liquor store twice, and several stores in Hannah City, and a Tavern and gas station in Mason City.