4 In Custody After Aurora Burglary Turns Into 5-Hour Police Standoff
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Four people were taken into custody Saturday night after a home burglary turned into a five-hour standoff with police in west suburban Aurora.
About 6 p.m., alert neighbors called 911 to report two men acting suspiciously who had just gotten out of a gray Honda Accord in the 300 block of South Western Avenue, according to Aurora police. The men were seen walking to the back of a home and trying to kick in a back door.
Patrol officers responded and spotted the Honda, which had two women inside, police said. When questioned by the officers, the two women's stories did not match up.
A patrol sergeant found signs of forced entry to the home where the men were seen kicking in the door and heard them inside throwing items around, police said. One of the burglars stuck his head out an open window, saw the police and quickly ducked back inside.
Officers surrounded the home and 911 operators contacted the homeowner, who said he had a large cache of loaded guns of all types and sizes inside the house, police said. The guns were not locked up.
The two burglars refused to leave the home and and a SWAT team was called, police said. For the next five hours, the burglars yelled threats at the officers, became increasingly irate, smashed numerous windows and pointed guns outside.
At 10:42 p.m., one of the burglars pointed a shotgun directly at a group of officers, and one of the officers returned fire, shooting multiple times, police said. The shots missed and struck a window frame.
About the same time, officers shot multiple canisters of gas inside the home.
The burglars surrendered at 11:10 p.m., but fought with officers the entire time they were being handcuffed, police said. No officers were injured.
Both men, ages 24 and 25, remain under police guard at an Aurora hospital for treatment of multiple cuts to the hands they suffered when breaking windows. Their injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.
The women, ages 22 and 23, are being held at the Aurora Police Department, police said. Charges were pending against all four suspects Sunday morning.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2017. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
