Pretrial release denied for Home Depot theft suspect
A man accused of stealing floor tile from a Home Depot store is being detained pretrial, as a DuPage County judge ruled Wednesday the defendant has a high risk of flight.
Timothy Wehmeyer, 42, of the 5100 block of South Mayfield Avenue in Chicago, is charged with felony burglary, felony retail theft and misdemeanor obstructing identification.
Prosecutors asked Judge Joshua Dieden to detain Wehmeyer because there is an active warrant for his arrest out of Crown Point, Indiana, on a larceny charge, a pending retail theft case out of Cook County, and he has failed to appear for criminal court cases at least 12 times. They also allege he told police that when he was released, he was going to flee to South Detroit, Michigan.
According to authorities, Wehmeyer selected 25 cases of flooring, valued at $1,700, and walked toward an exit around 10:48 a.m. Tuesday at the Home Depot at 17W734 22nd St. It is alleged he showed workers a fraudulent online receipt for the flooring, dated Oct. 13, as he passed the checkout area. When confronted at the door, he tried to flee, authorities said.
Authorities also allege Wehmeyer showed police a false driver's license when asked for identification.
According to a prosecutor's petition for detention, a Home Depot store detective told police they recognized Wehmeyer because they believed he had stolen another 25 cases of flooring from the store the day before.
His next court date is Nov. 21.