The infamous Lollapalooza “zombie” who earned 15 minutes in the spotlight by biting a complete stranger at the annual music festival in 2014 has apparently signed up for an extra couple of minutes of fame.
Prosecutors say the zombie — his actual name is Sergio Vicenteno — tackled a Chicago police officer who had a gun drawn while investigating a burglary in progress in the South Loop.
And Vicenteno won’t be biting anyone for a while — the cops broke his jaw.
Officers responded to multiple calls of a man trying to break into apartments on the 15th floor of a high-rise in the 1400 block of South Michigan around 10 p.m. Monday. According to dispatch records, one caller told a 911 operator that she thought the man was going to get into her apartment and attack her.
Assistant State’s Attorney Brian Burkhardt said police heard the distinct sound of gunfire as they arrived on the 15th floor, and they drew their own weapons as a precaution.
While the cops’ guns were still drawn, Vicenteno allegedly charged at the officers from around a corner, striking one of them in the chest. Other officers performed an “emergency take-down” because Vicenteno was on top of the officer whose handgun was unholstered, Burkhardt said. Vicenteno’s jaw was broken in the process.
Police detained Vicenteno and took him to University of Illinois Hospital for treatment. He remained there as of noon Tuesday. The officer he allegedly tackled was treated and released for injuries to his leg and knee.
It is not clear what caused the gunfire-like sound that prompted officers to pull their weapons.
Prosecutors charged Vicenteno with two felony counts of aggravated battery to a police officer. Judge John Lyke set his bail at $250,000 and ordered him to go onto electronic monitoring if he can post a 10% deposit.
Vicenteno received 18-months probation a few years ago after pleading guilty to aggravated battery in connection with a bizarre incident at the 2014 Lollapalooza festival.
The Tribune reported shortly after the attack that Vicenteno was “charged with biting a Wicker Park man while he was watching an Arctic Monkeys concert” on the first night of the festival.
Ben Lenet, who was 29 at the time, said Vicenteno bit through his right forearm, breaking the skin after Vincenteno got into an altercation with his friend. Lenet told his story on Reddit a couple of days after the festival ended:
I turn around and some guy none of us have ever seen or spoken to, without warning, body slams my friend and begins using his hands to choke him. My other friend begins hitting the assailant in the face. I come from the other side and place my right arm on his right arm and my left arm on his right shoulder, trying to pull him off. The attacker then turns his head and clamps his teeth into my arm for a good 5 seconds. He’s not nipping at me. He’s trying to bite through my arm. At this point, all three of us are hitting him, trying to get him off me. (Links to the pics of my gnawed-on arm: http://imgur.com/a/1pfj5) Finally he lets go and lunges at the feet of the original bodyslammed-friend, trying to bite him too. He is then kicked pretty squarely in the face. The attacker has now taken 10-15 blows to the head and been punted in the face. He gets up and walks away. Not stumbling. Not woozy. He just fucking walked away in a straight line. CPD would later tell me they only see assailants like that who are on PCP or bath salts.
A comparison to zombies stuck.
Police arrested Vicenteno about two weeks after the attack. He listed a home address in the 1400 block of South Michigan at the time.
Lenet sued Lollapalooza’s alcohol vendor and Vicenteno in July 2015. The parties resolved the matter without trial two years later, according to court records.
