Officers rescued an injured woman in Wauconda who reported she was held against her will for a week after she was given a ride by a man, who allegedly later threatened her with a machete and beat her.
Officers with the Wauconda Police Department observed a suspicious male and female in the parking lot of the Jewel-Osco, 547 West Liberty Street in Wauconda, around 9:08 p.m. Saturday.
Wauconda Police Department Public Information Officer Heather Cognac said the female appeared uncomfortable and the male was acting erratically.
Officers continued surveillance as the two subjects entered a vehicle and left the area.
Cognac said a traffic stop was initiated after officers observed multiple violations, including driving with no headlights and not displaying a front license plate.
The driver, identified as Frank R. Saporito, 42, of Romeoville, was confrontational and uncooperative, Cognac said.
The female passenger appeared fearful, had visible injuries and reported that she was being held against her will.
Prosecutors said the woman told officers that she was at a bus stop near Midway Airport in Chicago on August 28.
Saporito pulled up in his vehicle and asked if she needed a ride. The two did not previously know each other, prosecutors said.
The victim agreed for Saporito to give her a ride and they drove back to Romeoville to Saporito’s residence.
They spent some time together and the victim wanted to leave but Saporito refused to drive her home, prosecutors said.
The woman said she was going to hitchhike home and Saporito told her she was not leaving and took her phone from her, prosecutors said.
She stayed in the home for the night and asked Saporito to drive her home again the next day.
Prosecutors said Saporito struck her in the face, causing bruising to her eye, when she tried to leave.
The woman saw guns in Saporito’s bedroom and was afraid to attempt to leave again.
Saporito, over the next few days, carried a large machete, threatening her with it, and would even follow her to the bathroom while armed with the weapon, prosecutors said.
Saporito was taken into custody during the traffic stop in Wauconda and Wauconda Police Canine Skye indicated on the vehicle.
Cognac said a search of the car resulted in the recovery of the machete and a locked safe.
Suspected heroin was recovered from the safe, which was searched pursuant to a warrant. A white, rocky substance that field-tested positive for heroin was also found inside the car.
Saporito was charged with aggravated unlawful restraint, unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, two counts of domestic battery and improper display of registration. Additional charges for the drugs are pending lab analysis.
Saporito was sweating heavily when taken into custody and was yelling about the Lord and being innocent, prosecutors said.
He told officers during an interview that he wanted the victim to be his wife, he wanted to have children with her and he needed her to be “obedient.”
The victim was provided with assistance and support services, Cognac said.
Saporito spoke out during a First Appearance Court hearing on Sunday and said he was innocent while calling the victim a prostitute and a drug addict. He said he “took her in.”
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a petition to detain him pending trial and Lake County Judge Michael Nerheim granted the request following a detention hearing on Monday.
Saporito is scheduled to appear in court again on October 1 for a preliminary hearing.