A member of the U.S. Army, who is a Huntley resident, was arrested last week near Wauconda after a warrant was issued for him for military desertion, police said.
Brandon M. Zoellner, 21, of the 10700 block of Preston Parkway in Huntley, was charged with one count of desertion, which is a federal charge.
A Lake County sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to a vehicle in a ditch call on Darrell Road and Fisher Road in unincorporated Wauconda around 10:30 p.m. on February 10.
The deputy spoke with Zoellner, who was the driver of the vehicle, and he appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, Lake County Sheriff Spokesman Lt. Christopher Covelli said.
The deputy conducted standardized field sobriety tests and determined Zoellner had been driving under the influence of alcohol.
Sheriff’s deputies located numerous open beer cans inside of the vehicle. After being taken into custody for the DUI, sheriff’s deputies learned Zoellner was wanted by the United States Army for military desertion.
The U.S. Army issued the no-bond arrest warrant out of Kentucky, which was an extraditable warrant in Illinois.
The sheriff’s deputy also located approximately three grams of a white substance, believed to be cocaine in Zoellner’s clothing.
The substance will be tested by the crime laboratory and additional charges are possible if it is a controlled substance, Covelli said.
Zoellner was transported to the Lake County jail pending extradition by the U.S. Army.
Army officials have not released any information regarding the circumstances of the warrant.
A Twitter profile, believed to have belonged to Zoellner, showed a photo of him posing in an army uniform. His Twitter profile has since been deleted.