Elgin man charged in South Elgin road attack

An Elgin man was arrested and charged with intentionally damaging a tire on a woman's car and then attacking her in South Elgin.

Jorge D. Castaneda, 28, of the 0-100 block Lynch Street in Elgin, was charged with armed violence, aggravated battery and unlawful restraint, all felonies, after the incident in the early morning hours of April 28, South Elgin police said in a news release Thursday.

Police allege that Castaneda damaged the tire of 18-year-old woman in the parking lot of Wal-Mart at 1100 S. Randall Road in Elgin, then followed her until she pulled over with a flat tire along Randall Road.

Castaneda approached her, and helped her change the tire in the parking lot of Home Depot at 440 Randall Road, police said. He then tried attempted to subdue her with an “electronic control device,” police said.

Police initially investigated the incident as an attempted kidnapping, Sgt. Mike Doty said.

“There was no relationship between the victim and the offender,” Doty said. He declined to give more specifics, but praised the 18-year-old woman for her resilience in defending herself and the media's assistance in publicizing the search for the suspect.

Several tips from the public helped lead to Castaneda's arrest on Wednesday, police said. Through the course of the investigation several items of evidence were recovered and a positive identification of Castaneda led to his arrest, police said.

Castaneda appeared Thursday morning in Kane County bond court, where his bail was set at $300,000. He is next due in court May 19. If convicted of the most serious offense, he faces a prison sentence of 6 to 30 years.

The Elgin and St. Charles police departments assisted in the investigation. Anyone with additional information should call South Elgin police at (847) 741-2151.