Arlington Heights man convicted in cop-dragging case

A 36-year-old Arlington Heights man was convicted of trying to kill a Chicago police officer by dragging him from his car and running him over in the city’s Rush Street night life district in 2010, according to a published report.

Michael Cacini, of the 500 block of East Mayfair Road, was convicted of the attempted murder and aggravated battery charges by a Cook County jury on Friday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Authorities said Cacini became combative after officers Kristopher Rigan and Thomas O’Shaughnessy pulled him over at 3:15 a.m. on April 20, 2010, on the 100 block of West Elm Street in Chicago. They say Cacini punched Rigan, grabbed his police vest and pulled him halfway inside the car before driving off. Rigan testified that the car’s rear tire ran over his leg and shoulder.

Police said Cacini also struck O’Shaughnessy, who was coming to help his partner.

The officers said they pulled over Cacini in his Mercedes-Benz when they saw him pick up a man thought to be a drug dealer and believed a transaction was about to take place.

Cacini faces between 20 and 80 years in prison.