A Hebron man, who was charged last summer with threatening to harm a DCFS worker, was arrested on Friday after threatening to punch his public defender. Brandon J. Surma, 24, of the 11100 block of Vanderkarr Road in Hebron, was charged with threatening a public official, electronic harassment threatening a person and disorderly conduct. The […]
Tag: dcfs
Posted inLocal News
Former DCFS worker pleads not guilty to felony charges in AJ Freund case
Former DCFS worker and current McHenry County Board member Carlos Acosta pleaded not guilty to felony charges in connection with his mishandling of AJ Freund abuse investigations. Carlos J. Acosta, 54, of Woodstock, and Andrew R. Polovin, 48, of Island Lake, were both charged with two felony counts of endangering the life of a child […]
Posted inLocal News
Father of AJ Freund pleads guilty, sentenced to 30 years in prison in son’s death
Andrew Freund Sr. has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in the murder of his 5-year-old son after accepting a plea deal to lesser charges on Friday. Freund pleaded guilty to aggravated battery to a child, a Class X felony, involuntary manslaughter, a Class 3 felony, and concealing a homicidal death, […]
Posted inLocal News
Former DCFS supervisor pleads not guilty to felony charges in AJ Freund case
Former DCFS supervisor Andrew Polovin has pleaded not guilty to felony charges in connection with his mishandling of AJ Freund abuse investigations. Andrew R. Polovin, 48, of Island Lake, and Carlos J. Acosta, 54, of Woodstock, were both charged with two felony counts of endangering the life of a child and one felony count of […]
Posted inLocal News
Two former DCFS employees charged in AJ Freund case released from jail on bond
Two former DCFS caseworkers facing felony charges for their mishandling of AJ Freund abuse investigations were released from jail after posting bail. The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office announced Thursday evening that arrest warrants had been served on Carlos J. Acosta, 54, of the 500 block of Prairie Ridge Drive in Woodstock, and Andrew R. Polovin, […]
Posted inLocal News
Charges filed against 2 DCFS workers who handled AJ Freund case
Two DCFS caseworkers that investigated abuse of AJ Freund, who was murdered in 2019, were arrested on Thursday and are facing felony charges. The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office announced Thursday evening that arrest warrants had been served on Carlos J. Acosta, 54, of Woodstock, and Andrew R. Polovin, 48, of Island Lake. Acosta and Polovin […]
Posted inLocal News
Prosecutors looking into charges against DCFS supervisor in AJ Freund case
Prosecutors are looking into filing charges against a DCFS supervisor for his handling in the case of 5-year-old Crystal Lake boy Andrew Freund Jr., who was murdered in 2019. The Northwest Herald obtained a search warrant affidavit filed on May 7 by McHenry County State’s Attorney investigator Robert Diviacchi. The McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office […]
Posted inLocal News
Round Lake Park police officer found not guilty of paddling child, causing her to be hospitalized
A jury found a Round Lake Park police officer not guilty of paddling his girlfriend’s 5-year-old daughter multiple times, causing her to be hospitalized in April. Waymon G. Vela, 56, of the 21600 block of West Grass Lake Road in unincorporated Antioch, was charged with domestic battery causing bodily harm and domestic battery physical contact. […]
Posted inLocal News
Death of AJ Freund ’emblematic’ of DCFS’s failures, new report says
123 children died within a year of having contact with the Department of Children and Family Services, and AJ Freund’s death is ’emblematic’ of DCFS failures, a startling new report by the DCFS Inspector General says. The annual report shows that in the fiscal year which ended in June, of the 123 deaths, 24 were […]