A North Chicago father was arrested following a police standoff and found with a stolen gun after he abducted a 2-year-old child in North Chicago, prosecutors said.
Allen Jefferson, 23, of North Chicago, was charged with child abduction and unlawful possession of a firearm.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Daly said the North Chicago Police Department responded on September 6 for a custody dispute.
A woman called police after reporting Jefferson came to her residence on September 1.
Jefferson grabbed their two-year-old child and a diaper bag before running out of the house, Daly said.
The child’s mother is the primary caregiver of the child and there is no court-ordered custody or visitation, Daly said. Jefferson and the woman are not married.
The woman called Jefferson 20 times that day trying to get him to return the child.
Daly said the mother asked Jefferson for a photo of the child three days later but he did not respond. The mother continued messaging Jefferson.
Jefferson later went to the mother’s residence to destroy a window with a gun and fled, Daly said.
Daly said that Jefferson had later called the mother and the woman heard the child crying and believed Jefferson was striking the child.
The woman went to Jefferson’s residence in the 1800 block of Morrow Avenue in North Chicago and called 911.
Officers spoke with Jefferson and asked him to bring out the child but he claimed he was not at the residence.
The officers could hear a baby crying inside the apartment, Daly said. Jefferson’s mother lives at the residence and she let officers inside.
Jefferson eventually exited the residence following a standoff with police. Paramedics were called to evaluate the child.
Daly said a search of the residence was conducted and officers found a loaded Glock handgun that was stolen out of Waukegan a year prior.
Jefferson was on probation at the time of his arrest for a 2021 case where he was convicted of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.
Lake County Judge Theodore Potkonjak ordered Jefferson held on a $500,000 bond during an initial court hearing earlier this month before the end of cash bail went into effect.
Jefferson remains held in the Lake County Jail on the cash bond as of Saturday. Prosecutors have not filed a petition to detain Jefferson yet.