Will County Sheriff Mike Kelley would like to announce the arrests of Wallace I. Thomas, age 18, of Plainfield and his accomplice, a male juvenile from Bolingbrook in their involvement in an armed Robbery that occurred on 03/12/2018 at approximately midnight at a Speedway Gas Station located in Homer Glen.
On 03/12/2018, at approximately 12:01 AM, Deputies with the Will County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to the Speedway Gas Station located at 15060 S. Bell Road in Homer Glen. Deputies were informed that an unknown male subject wearing a white colored covering over his face displayed a handgun at an employee and demanded money. The assailant left the gas station with an unknown amount of United States Currency.
The offender was described as a male, approximately 6’1”-6’2” and weighing 180 pounds. The suspect was wearing a blue jumpsuit with a hood and his face was covered by a white rag or pillow case with eye holes cut out. The suspect was also wearing blue rubber gloves. The suspect displayed a black colored handgun which had a brown handle. After emptying the contents of the register into a bag, the victim ran from behind the counter and fled the store, attempting to get help. The suspect would later flee the station on foot running towards Bell Road.
The employee of the gas station flagged down an individual in a nearby parking lot and advised him that his store was just robbed. The victim asked the individual to call the police. The employee of the gas station then observed the suspect jump into a vehicle that had been Northbound on Bell Road. The individual that the employee made contact with then began to follow the offending vehicle, while the victim contacted the Will County Sheriff’s Office. The witness was able to obtain the license plate of the offending vehicle and eventually lost sight of the offenders while traveling Northbound Bell Road near McCarthy Road in Lemont.
It was later determined by Speedway Management that $116.00 was stolen from the business. The suspect vehicle was later located at an address in Plainfield, Illinois by detectives with the Will County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives learned that the person in last control of the vehicle was Wallace I. Thomas. Detectives learned from the mother of Wallace Thomas, that he was in school upon their arrival.
Detectives were able to obtain consent to search from the owner of the vehicle, which was secured in a garage. Upon searching the interior of the vehicle, a folded up $1.00 bill and one blue latex glove were located next to each other, between the front passenger seat and the rear passenger seat of the vehicle. The glove appeared to be the same type of glove that was observed by the victim on scene and detectives upon viewing the surveillance video.
Detectives were able to locate Wallace I. Thomas at his school in Joliet, and subsequently transported him to the Will County Sheriff’s Office Public Safety Complex. Wallace Thomas was interviewed by Detectives with the Will County Sheriff’s Office.
Wallace subsequently confessed to his involvement in the armed robbery of the gas station and provided detectives with information in regards to who the gunman was. Detectives were able to locate the other suspect in Bolingbrook and executed a search warrant at his residence. Additional items of evidentiary value were located inside of the Bolingbrook residence, including the patterned pillowcase with eye holes cut out. Inside that pillow case was a blue latex glove and the black handgun, which turned out to be a bb-gun.
Wallace I. Thomas was charged with Aggravated Armed Robbery and transported to the Will County Adult Detention Facility and the gunman, a juvenile male was transported to the River Valley Justice Center and charged with Aggravated Armed Robbery.
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