Authorities say that Lake County Sheriffโs Canine Dax apprehended nine juvenile suspects that fled from stolen vehicles in two different incidents in a 24-hour span.
A Lake County sheriffโs deputy located a vehicle crash in the area of Wadsworth Road and Delany Road in Wadsworth around 1 a.m. Wednesday.
The vehicle was reported stolen from a neighboring community, Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said.
Three suspects were reported to be involved in the theft at the time when the vehicle was stolen.
Deputy John Forlenza and Canine Dax responded to the scene to conduct a track of the offenders who fled from the crash.
Dax tracked for just over a mile and located three juveniles who ran when they heard Dax.
Covelli said the three juveniles ran onto the roadway where another sheriffโs deputy was waiting.
They were taken into custody by sheriffโs deputies and turned over to the neighboring community where the vehicle was stolen.
The Illinois State Police requested assistance around midnight on Thursday for a stolen vehicle that crashed in the area of Lake Cook Road and Interstate 94 in Deerfield.
Multiple occupants fled from the vehicle when it crashed, Covelli said.
Dax and Forlenza responded to the scene and conducted a track.
Dax tracked northwest into a heavily wooded area where he located three juvenile offenders hiding, Covelli said. They were taken into custody.
Dax then continued tracking along the shoreline of the Des Plaines River where he located three additional juvenile offenders hiding.
They too were arrested and all were turned over to the Illinois State Police.
“Our Lake County Sheriffโs Office Canine Teams continue to impress every single day. They are a significant necessity in keeping our community safe,” Lake County Sheriff John Idleburg said.
“I could not be prouder of the work of our five canine teams and cannot wait for our two additional teams to finish their basic training and hit the streets!” Idleburg said.