A passenger was arrested after he allegedly grabbed the wheel of a car and intentionally caused the vehicle to drive off the roadway and crash into a tree in Woodstock.
The Woodstock Fire/Rescue District and Woodstock Police Department responded around 8:36 p.m. on March 12 to the area of Country Club Road and Oakmont Drive for a vehicle crash.
Woodstock Fire/Rescue District Public Information Officer Alex Vucha said the crash involved a pickup truck, which was the only vehicle involved.
The truck had struck a tree off of the roadway and sustained moderate damage.
Three people were in the vehicle and no one required transport to the hospital, Vucha said.
Ralph R. Realmo, 27, who is homeless in the Woodstock area, was arrested and charged with two counts of reckless conduct causing bodily harm or endangering safety.
A criminal complaint filed in McHenry County Circuit Court alleges Realmo was a passenger in the truck and intentionally caused the crash, endangering the safety of the two passengers.
The complaint said Realmo grabbed the steering wheel while the vehicle was in motion and intentionally ran the truck off the roadway, causing it to strike the tree hard enough to set off multiple airbags.
Realmo was transported to the McHenry County Jail and released following an initial appearance hearing. The charges are non-detainable.
McHenry County Judge Cynthia Lamb ordered Realmo to not leave the state without court permission, not possess dangerous weapons, be placed on pre-trial service monitoring, not drive a vehicle without a valid driver’s license, not consume any illegal drugs, submit to random drug screens and surrender his FOID card and weapons if he has them.
Realmo is scheduled to appear in court again on Thursday for a plea hearing.