Crime & Safety

Two Illinois Men Held, Suspected of Overnight Attempted Burglary at Farm & Fleet

Sturtevant Police say two men from Illinois may have been trying to steal catalytic converters from Farm & Fleet to sell for cash.

So much for partnership. Two men from Illinois were apprehended just after midnight Friday, and while one asked for a lawyer, his partner allegedly rolled over and spilled it all to police.

Antwan Gray, 29, and Dionisio Aviles, 19, are suspected of attempted burglary and possession of burglarizing tools after they were caught by Sturtevant Police with a stack of used automobile parts nearby, a pair of bolt cutters and what looked like a hole cut in the security fence of the business.

According the police report, Sturtevant Police responded at 12:51 Friday morning to a call of a suspicious person wearing an orange shirt in the back lot of Farm & Fleet, 8401 Durand Avenue. When officers arrived, they observed two men at the southwest corner of a fenced area in the back lot behind the building. 

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Police asked for photo identification and both suspects produced Illinois driver's licenses. A Mount Pleasant Police officer also responded to give assistance.

One of the men - Gray - reportedly had gravel stuck to his forearms and was wearing a red/orange shirt. Officers asked what he was doing behind Farm & Fleet and the report narrative indicates that Gray said he was just taking a walk when he had to relieve himself. When asked if he had a vehicle nearby, Gray allegedly pointed at a blue SUV pointed a short distance away and then said he would sit in the back of a squad car while officers questioned Aviles.

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Officers questioned Aviles who said Gray is the nephew of his father's wife and that they were just out walking. Aviles was placed in the back of the other squad car with Sturtevant and Mount Pleasant officers had a look around.

In the report, police say they found a pair of red bolt cutters and 13 used catalytic converters stacked near the southwest corner of the fence next to what turned out to be a large hole cut in the fence. When officers questioned Gray about what they'd found, he reportedly tried to stick to his story about a walk, but asked for a lawyer after he was told he was being arrested.

Aviles, on the other hand, said he didn't know what was going on but would be willing to give a statement.

Both suspects were transported to the Sturtevant Police Department and held in separate rooms. After reading Aviles his Miranda rights, officers supplied a voluntary statement form for him to complete, which implicates Gray in a scheme to steal scrap metal and then sell it for cash. Aviles reportedly asked officers if he could retreive his wedding ring from the SUV but was told the vehicle was being impounded.

A store manager for Farm & Fleet told Patch they are unable to comment on the incident, but the police report states that a black-and-white still photo was pulled from store surveillance video that supposedly shows Gray near a shipping container in the secured area of the lot. Sturtevant Police are waiting for the rest of the video to be provided by the store.

Both Gray and Aviles are being held at the Racine County Jail on one count each of attempted burglary and possession of burglarizing tools.


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