A Cary man has been sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to killing a police officer, who was also a Cary resident, in a speeding, wrong-way driving crash in Barrington.
Barrington Police Chief David Daigle said a 2020 Kia Forte, driven by Christopher Lopez, 24, of Cary, was traveling northbound on Northwest Highway south of Main Street around 4:09 a.m. on February 16, 2025.
Prosecutors said the Kia was in the far right northbound lane near the Metra access.
The Kia failed to maintain its lane of travel and crossed multiple lanes of traffic, veering into the southbound lanes of Northwest Highway, prosecutors said.
Lopez’s vehicle struck a 2004 Volkswagen Jetta, driven by Robert Fryc, 43, of Cary, as it was traveling southeast.
A 911 caller reported one person was possibly unresponsive and not breathing following the two-vehicle crash.
Firefighters arrived and extricated one of the victims from the wreckage, according to fire department radio traffic.
Fryc was transported to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington where he was later pronounced dead, Daigle said.
The Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team (MCAT) was requested to assist in the investigation.
Daigle said Lopez was arrested following the crash for suspicion of driving under the influence.
Prosecutors said Lopez made admissions to consuming alcohol prior to driving and he showed clues of impairment. Video showed him leaving a banquet hall prior to the crash.
Investigators recovered the event data recorder from Lopez’s vehicle which showed he did not brake and was traveling in excess of the posted speed limit when he collided with Fryc’s vehicle, prosecutors said.
He was transported to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital for further driving under the influence testing.
Fryc was a longtime police officer with the Glenview Police Department.
A procession, approximately six miles long, was led from Our Lady of the Wayside Catholic Church in Arlington Heights to St. Michael The Archangel Catholic Cemetery in Palatine where Fryc was laid to rest.
Law enforcement agencies from throughout the Chicagoland area attended the funeral services and procession.
The Glenview Police Department said Fryc was on his way to work when the crash occurred. Fryc had been with the Glenview Police Department since 2007.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office reviewed the case and approved one count of reckless homicide, a Class 3 felony, against Lopez.
The state’s attorney’s office filed a petition to detain Lopez pending trial, arguing he poses a real and present danger to the community, court records show.
Lopez appeared at the Cook County Third Municipal District Courthouse in Rolling Meadows for a detention hearing on Tuesday.
Cook County Judge Andreana A. Turano granted the petition and remanded Lopez to the Cook County Jail.
The judge said that Lopez placed community members at risk when he drank, sped and drove recklessly.
Turano also said conditions of release, such as electronic home monitoring or GPS monitoring, would be inadequate in preventing Lopez from consuming alcohol, getting behind the wheel of a car and injuring or killing others.
Lopez has prior violations for speeding and failure to obey a traffic control device, court documents said.
Another judge later released Lopez and placed him on pre-trial conditions, including electronic monitoring.
Fryc was recognized at the village’s February 4, 2025, Board of Trustees meeting for being one of the first responders who helped save the life of a fellow officer the prior summer.
“Officer Fryc was more than just a colleague,” said then-Glenview Police Chief William Fitzpatrick.
“He was a part of our family and a part of this community. Our hearts are broken by his passing, and our priority now is to support his loved ones and our department as we grieve this unimaginable loss together,” Fitzpatrick said.
Glenview Village President Michael Jenny said at the time of the incident that the village was devastated by the tragic loss of Fryc, who just a few weeks prior was “recognized for his service and dedication to Glenview.”
The Village of Glenview and the Glenview Police Department called his death a “tremendous loss.”
Court records show Lopez recently pleaded guilty to one count of reckless homicide and was sentenced earlier this month by Cook County Judge Marc W. Martin to three years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
He is receiving 355 days of credit for time served in custody and on GPS monitoring. A projected release date was not immediately known.
An obituary for Fryc said he leaves behind his wife and several other family members. He was described as being “full of life, energy, and made all those around him laugh with the most ridiculous idiosyncrasies that only those that knew him – knew about.”
“Rob had many passions and even more hobbies; from spending summer times with his dear wife and family in Michigan – where he always let Josie run free; early morning couch stints watching Premier League, he enjoyed trying new restaurants just as much as he loved the same old dive bar; when it came time for a late start to his morning shift, he would never pass up stopping by his mom & dad’s for some jajko, bacon, and shooting the breeze,” the obituary said.
“Rob had a heart for others, he would physically give you the shirt off his back, and he lived by the words, ‘You’ll never walk alone,'” the obituary said.