A Glendale Heights man accused of stealing and vandalizing several of the suburb’s Flock cameras had a notepad in his car containing writings in which he vowed to “dispatch the vermin” and declared that “this world needs someone to do the dirty work,” according to DuPage County State’s Attorney Bob Berlin. The man, Hayden Green, 19, was released from custody pending trial because the charges against him do not allow for detention under Illinois’ SAFE-T Act, Berlin’s office said.
Green is charged with three counts of theft of government property and three counts of criminal damage to government-supported property in connection with a series of incidents involving Flock automated license plate reader cameras and a school zone speed radar unit.
On August 14, Glendale Heights police discovered that five of the village’s Flock cameras had been vandalized with spray paint, while the wires to another camera had been cut, according to Berlin’s office. Two additional cameras were cut from their poles and stolen while the solar panels of an elementary school speed-zone camera were shattered and its display wires cut, Berlin’s office said.
Investigators determined that Green committed all of the crimes between midnight and 2 a.m. that morning, according to Berlin. Police also determined that multiple Flock cameras had been stolen in Glendale Heights, unincorporated DuPage County, and Bloomingdale.
After obtaining a search warrant, police searched Green’s vehicle and recovered a bent Sawzall blade, a pair of infrared night-vision binoculars, and a notepad containing writings allegedly authored by Green.
One passage quoted by Berlin allegedly read, “The world as it stands today appalls me, the depravity, wars, rape, all of it distracted by the hands behind this deprecated society. All of these poor misled proud boys, pigs the lot of them shall be subject to my judgment. I will save the worthy and dispatch the vermin. This world needs someone to do the dirty work. They will fear me. I will cleanse this filthy world for someone has to.”
Glendale Heights police obtained an arrest warrant for Green on Thursday and arrested him the same day.
Berlin called the allegations “outrageous.”
“Damaging a radar unit near a school zone is not only a serious crime but endangers the safety of school children on their way to and from school,” the veteran prosecutor said. “Damaging or stealing License Plate Readers impacts the ability of police to keep the community safe.”
All six charges against Green are non-detainable offenses under the SAFE-T Act, so a judge released Green from custody to await trial, according to Berlin’s office.
Last month, Berlin’s office charged three men with using power drills to rip automated license plate reader cameras off their poles after cops stumbled onto one suspect holding a drill next to a Flock camera before finding a getaway car packed with stolen equipment.
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