Cook County briefs
Man charged in 6th DUI
Mayolo Hernandez, 49, of the 200 block of Renee Terrace, Wheeling, has been charged with felony aggravated driving under the influence for his sixth DUI arrest since 1989, Wheeling police said. His prior arrests were in 1989, 1991, 2003, 2004 and 2006, police said. His 1996 Honda Passport rear-ended a 2008 Lexus ES300 during stop-and-go traffic on southbound Wolf Road at Dundee Road around 6:10 p.m. Feb. 16 at Wolf and Dundee roads, reports said. In addition to the felony charge, he was charged with driving under the influence, revoked driver's license, no insurance, and failure to reduce speed to avoid a crash. Reports said he admitted consuming six beers before driving. His court date is March 13 and bond was set at $500,000.
Thomas student can spell
Andrew Napora, an eighth grader at Thomas Middle School in Arlington Heights, has won the Suburban Cook County Regional Spelling Bee and now will be heading to Washington, D.C., for the 82nd Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee Final May 26-28. The competition was Wednesday night in Melrose Park.
Celebration of sainthood
The Little Sisters of the Poor, the international Catholic congregation that runs St. Joseph's Home for the Elderly in Palatine, will hold a special celebration and Mass today in honor of the canonization of the congregation's French founder, the Blessed Jeanne Jugan. She founded the order in 1839, and the Little Sisters of the Poor now run 202 homes around the world that care for needy elderly. The Vatican has announced that today will it set the date for later this year when Jugan will formally be canonized, or awarded sainthood.
Police seek food thieves
Arlington Heights police are looking for a couple who spent Valentine's Day ripping off a local grocery store. The couple loaded up a grocery cart at Valli Produce, 400 E. Golf Road, at abut 4:45 p.m. on Feb 14. However, instead of the checkout line, they left through an automatic door, with the help of another person who waited outside. Once in the parking lot, all three people loaded the stolen groceries into the trunk of four-door 1996 black Mercury. Police said the car is registered to a Eunice Machado of the 7500 block of N. Elmhurst Road in Des Plaines, but that no one named Eunice Machado lives at that address. Anyone with information should call Det. Rich Sperando at (847) 368-5357.
A second suspicious vehicle
Barrington Unit District 220 and Barrington Hills police are cautioning residents with students of a new report of a suspicious vehicle seen Thursday on Country Oaks Road. It appears, however, that this incident is unrelated to two others in which the white male driver of a green sport-utility vehicle harassed female students walking in Barrington. The Barrington Hills incident involved a student who got off the school bus at the corner of Lake-Cook and Country Oaks roads at about 3:30 p.m. The student noticed a dark blue "transportation-type" passenger van with tinted windows, which began slowly following but not passing the student. The student quickly went to a neighbor's house. People with questions or information can call Barrington Hills police at (847) 551-3006.