Cigarette Store Robbed At Gunpoint

Streator Police are investigating a store robbed at gunpoint.

A woman was allegedly closing up Tuesday night at Cigarette Express when two masked men brought her back inside the business and demanded money.  After a gun was shown, the suspects made way with an undisclosed amount of money.  The victim wasn’t hurt.

Streator investigators say the suspects were both disguised head to toe, wearing masks and dark clothing.  They brought in a K-9 unit but to no avail.

If you have information about the Cigarette Express robbery, call Streator Police.

High Speed Chase On Interstate 80

A wild car chase started in Peru yesterday and ended near Dwight.

Just after 8:30 Tuesday morning, a trooper pulled over Kenneth Miller of Chicago in Peru for driving with a revoked license.  As he was being arrested, a passenger, Christopher Thomas of South Holland drove away.

Thomas sped down Interstate 80 topping 100 miles an hour before exiting in Ottawa and allegedly throwing stolen items from the car.  He allegedly got back on the interstate which is when a state police airplane joined in the chase.  Thomas exited in Morris and continued driving at a high rate of speed on Route 47 before stopping for gas.  He allegedly left when police arrived.

Thomas got on Interstate 55 with police behind him until he ran out of gas near Odell.  He was arrested without incident.

Miller and Thomas are both charged with driving with a revoked license and felony theft for things they allegedly had in the car and threw out.

Woman’s death under investigation

Toxicology tests could give investigators an idea of what killed a woman in La Salle.

Police and an ambulance were called to a home on Hennepin Street late Tuesday night for a 30 year old who was unresponsive.  She was taken to Illinois Valley Community Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Her name hasn’t been released.  Investigators don’t believe it was foul play.  It’s being investigated.

Cocaine charges for Ottawa men

Ottawa Narcotics investigators have been keeping an eye on a block of Court Street.  Their effort has left two men arrested for cocaine charges.

Police say they arrested Todd Gould of Ottawa after watching him leave the Right Downtown Sports Bar Monday.  Police say they stopped Gould because he was riding a bike without a light.  He was arrested for possession of a controlled substance after police say they found what they believe is half a gram of cocaine and a pipe with cocaine residue.

Tuesday police say they watched Roger Thomas of Ottawa leave the bar.  After stopping Thomas for a traffic violation, police say they found two small bags with about 1.4 grams of cocaine.

Thomas was also arrested for possession of a controlled substance.  Both were taken to the La Salle County Jail.

Driver treated for injuries after semi accident

An early morning semi accident near Marseilles on Interstate 80 left the driver being treated for injuries.

Police say Michael Peterson of Colfax was heading east near the Marseilles exit Wednesday morning when he left the road in a construction area with a shoulder drop off.  Police say the uneven shoulder caused the truck to go into the ditch before rolling over.

Peterson was taken to Morris Hospital.

The right lane of traffic was closed for a couple of hours, but reopened by 9am.

Lt. Gov candidate plans local meet-and-greets

If you’re interested in meeting the Democrat running for the Lt. Governor position, she’ll be in Hennepin and El Paso Wednesday.

Sheila Simon is stopping by Topsy’s Restaurant and Tavern in El Paso at 12pm for a meet-and-greet.

She’ll be at Rolando’s Restaurant in Hennepin at 3:30pm for another meet-and-greet.

Simon faces Republican Jason Plummer.

Good weather expected to increase visitors to state parks

Labor Day Weekend will draw many families to Starved Rock and Matthiessen State Parks.

Site supervisor Tom Levy is estimating 7,000 people a day will pass through the two parks.  He thinks turn out will be good because of the nice weather that’s predicted.

He says the number of visitors this summer has been comparable to previous seasons.