Police: Man Used Sword To Beat, Sexually Assault Woman In River Forest
RIVER FOREST, Ill. (STMW) -- A North Side man has been charged with allegedly beating and sexually assaulting an acquaintance with a sword in her west suburban River Forest home, police said.
Kenneth W. Merrills, 20, used a sword to beat, sexually assault and restrain a 43-year-old woman inside her home in River Forest late Wednesday and early Thursday, according to a release from River Forest police.
The victim left her residence and called police about 7:45 a.m. Thursday to report that an acquaintance sexually assaulted her, police said. She told responding officers that Merrills and the sword were still inside her home.
Police forced their way into her home and took Merrills into custody without incident, police said.
Merrills, of the 6000 block of North Richmond Street, was charged with felony aggravated criminal sexual assault and unlawful restraint, police said. A judge ordered Merrills held on $15,000 bond for this case and without bond for violating probation in a previous case during a Friday hearing in Maywood.
The woman was taken to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and was released later Thursday, police said.
Merrills will be back in court March 21 in Maywood.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2013. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
