Investigators have seized the Audi SUV believed to have struck and killed a 22-year-old Lake Forest College student near Vernon Hills after alert staff at a repair shop notified police.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office announced on Friday the 2014 Audi Q5 was located at a body shop in Wheeling.
Alert staff at the body shop saw social media posts and news media reports about the wanted vehicle, according to Lake County Sheriff Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
After seeing the damage on the Audi Q5, the employees believed it was likely the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run of Wojciech Glowik, 22, of Glenview.
They contacted the Lake County Sheriff’s Office on Monday and a search warrant was obtained on Wednesday, Covelli said.
Investigators responded to the body shop and found the damage was consistent with the vehicle that fled, as pieces left at the scene matched the vehicle in the body shop, Covelli added.
The vehicle is now in the custody of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and investigators have been processing it for evidence.
“I am incredibly thankful for the alert and honest staff at the auto repair shop. They played an integral role in us being able to process the vehicle for evidence and advance our investigation,” Lake County Sheriff John D. Idleburg said.
“Our condolences go out to the friends and family of Mr. Glowik and we will do everything in our power to seek justice in this case.”
Covelli said deputies responded to a call of a person down in the 200 block of Route 45 in Indian Creek around 2:10 a.m. Saturday.
Deputies arrived to find Glowik unconscious after he had been struck by a vehicle near Route 45 and Evergreen Drive.
The Countryside Fire Protection District transported Glowik by ambulance to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville where he later died, Covelli said.
An autopsy confirmed Glowik died from multiple blunt force injuries, according to Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek.
Banek said Glowik was taken off a ventilator at Advocate Condell Medical Center and pronounced dead Monday afternoon.
A preliminary investigation shows the man was walking on or near the roadway when he was struck by the passing Audi SUV that was traveling southeast on Route 45, Covelli said.
The driver of the Audi did not stop after striking Glowik and continued southeast on Route 45.
“He was humble, kind, sweet, smart and handsome. We still feel his presence and are so devastated he did not come home to us,” the man’s family told ABC7 Chicago in a statement.
Glowik was a senior at Lake Forest College majoring in business finance.
He was working as a cashier in Prospect Heights at Deli 4 You Market and had recently begun working in their accounting office, the company said.
“No words can describe how much you will be missed, Wojtek. We are devastated to not be able to see your smile again. We miss you and love you,” the company said in a statement.
A GoFundMe account was started as a memorial fund by Alec Petitpren, who is a family member of Glowik.
“He was an extremely hard-working and driven young man with entrepreneurial career aspirations to one day open a business of his own. He was the most kind young man most people had ever met with nothing negative to say about anyone,” Petitpren said.
Anyone with information about the crash or who knows who may have been driving the Audi is asked to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 847-549-5200.
The crash remains under investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Technical Crash Investigations Unit.