Wheeling man arrested with gun on school property

Wheeling police arrested a 20-year-old man Wednesday after he reportedly tried to take his 5-year-old child out of school while having a smell of liquor on his breath and an unloaded shotgun in the rear passenger area of his vehicle, authorities said.

Horacio Reynoso, Jr., 20, of the 200 block of Highland Avenue in Wheeling, is charged with one count of unlawful use of a weapon on school property, one count of possession of a firearm without a requisite a Firearm Owners ID, and one count of unlawful use of a weapon. The most serious charge is a Class 3 felony punishable by a maximum two to five years in prison.

Police said Reynoso arrived at Walt Whitman Elementary School, 133 Wille Ave., at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday and tried to pick up his child. School personnel noticed the smell of an alcohol on his breath and called the child's mother, according to police. The mother related that she did not want the child released to Reynoso, and school staff called police.

Police said an investigation determined that Reynoso had driven to the school and parked his vehicle on school property. A passenger in the vehicle related that Reynoso was in possession of a firearm, and officers subsequently recovered an unloaded Winchester .20-gauge shotgun from inside the vehicle, according to police.

Reynoso was taken into custody, and later admitted to possessing the gun, police said.

Bond was set at $40,000. Reynoso's next court appearance is scheduled on Oct. 23 at the Cook County courthouse in Rolling Meadows.