4 Elgin men charged in West Side mailbox bombings
Four Elgin men were charged over the weekend in connection with a pair of mailbox bombings at a residence on the city's west side.
Police said the men filled 2-liter plastic bottles with chemicals causing them to expand and explode.
No one was hurt in the attacks, reported late July 21 and early Friday at the same residence on the 400 block of Mooresfield Street.
"They knew one of the people who lived there," Deputy Elgin Police Chief Jeff Swoboda said Monday. "It wasn't completely random."
Robert Freres, 19, of the 600 block of Covered Bridge Road; Kyle J. Haselton, 18, of the 2400 block of Barn Owl Lane; Michael R. Ketch, 19, of the 9N565 Adobe Ridge; and Christopher S. Strong, 20, whose last known address also was on the 600 block of Covered Bridge Road, were each charged with two counts of possession of explosives and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon.
Swoboda said the first mailbox bombing on Mooresfield Street happened about 11 p.m. Tuesday. A second was reported at 2:25 a.m. Friday. A short time later police pulled over a vehicle matching witness descriptions, finding the suspects and additional bombs in the vehicle, Swoboda said.
The Kane County Sheriff's office also is investigating two nearly identical bombings reported early Friday on the 38W200 block of Oak Drive and the 38W600 block of Cloverfield Drive in St. Charles Township. According to a police report, one of two bombs malfunctioned and did not explode. No one was hurt in either incident.
Possession of explosives is a Class 1 felony with a standard sentencing range of four to 15 years in prison or probation.
Court records show Strong was sentenced to 150 hours of community service last August after he was convicted of retail theft. None of the other men have criminal records locally, other than traffic offenses.
Freres, Haselton, Ketch and Strong were released on bond over the weekend after each posting $2,500 bond. They are due to appear in court Aug. 7 before Judge Thomas E. Mueller.
An attorney for Haselton could not immediately be reached for comment. No attorneys were listed in court records for the remaining suspects.