Three arrested in Villa Park home invasion

A Villa Park-area man used a kitchen knife and dishes to fight off three armed robbers during a weekend home invasion, prosecutors said Monday.

Twenty-four-year-olds Ryan Berry, Andrew Cotton and Anthony Nutoni have been charged in the attack on the 1S100 block of Dillon Lane in unincorporated DuPage County.

Authorities said the robbers knocked on the victim’s door shortly after 12 a.m. Sunday and forced their way inside. Berry and Nutoni were armed with shotguns and had bandannas over their faces while Cotton wielded a knife, according to prosecutors.

Once inside, Berry struck the 49-year-old victim with a shotgun so hard the firearm shattered, prosecutors said. The robbers then punched and kicked the victim while demanding money.

At some point, the victim retreated to his kitchen, grabbed a knife and began throwing dishes at the robbers. Prosecutors said Cotton was struck in the head with a glass pitcher, and the victim continued to fight with a broken pitcher handle until the men fled.

“Ultimately, he was able to fend off the three co-defendants,” Assistant State’s Attorney Mike Fisher said in court, adding the victim didn’t know his attackers.

Sheriff’s detectives identified the suspects after they tracked down Cotton at a hospital where he was being treated for head lacerations. Prosecutors said Cotton implicated Berry, who implicated all three defendants.

Police recovered two shotguns after executing search warrants on a residence and a vehicle. Fisher said the victim was hospitalized for unspecified injuries.

In bond court Monday, Judge Elizabeth Sexton set bail at $500,000 for Berry and $250,000 for Nutoni, meaning they would have to post $50,000 and $25,000, respectively, to get out of jail. Cotton remained hospitalized but has been formally charged.

Berry, who lives with Cotton on the 300 block of Scott Avenue in Glen Ellyn, has a prior theft conviction, according to prosecutors. Nutoni, of the 600 block of Edgewood Street in Lombard, has no prior criminal background, defense attorney John Carbon said.

Carbon added that the allegations against Nutoni were “not the same” as those against the other suspects. He said his client may have made “entrance for a different purpose.”

If convicted, the defendants could face 21 to 45 years in prison, prosecutors said. Berry is scheduled to appear Feb. 19 in front of Judge Daniel Guerin. Nutoni is scheduled to appear Feb. 21 in front of Judge Blanche Hill Fawell.

ŸDaily Herald staff writer Lee Filas contributed to this report.