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Post by wvhsparent on Jun 8, 2006 6:24:11 GMT -6
Police accuse 2 of prank at Neuqua
Published June 8, 2006
NAPERVILLE -- A plan to cut power to Neuqua Valley High School as part of an elaborate senior prank resulted in felony charges for two Naperville teenagers, Naperville police said.
Police said Justin W. Johnson, 17, and Kevin W. Tait, 18, had graduated from Neuqua Valley when they returned to the campus early Tuesday.
Tait took bolt cutters from a shop at the school and early Tuesday cut the wiring for three surveillance cameras on the roof as well as the battery cable for a backup generator, police said.
Johnson wore a black ski mask and used a key to the school that the boys had found months earlier to sneak into the boiler room, police said. Johnson is alleged to have intended to flip the circuit breaker and cut power to the school but a custodian confronted him.
Both boys fled then were caught, police said.
"It could have had major consequences and these were appropriate charges," said Lt. Dave Hoffman.
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Post by wvhsparent on Jun 8, 2006 6:25:02 GMT -6
Senior prank leads to felony charges
Tribune staff reports
Published June 7, 2006, 6:52 PM CDT
A plan to cut power to Neuqua Valley High School as part of an elaborate senior prank resulted in felony charges for two Naperville teenagers, Naperville police said.
Police said Justin W. Johnson, 17, and Kevin W. Tait, 18, had graduated from Neuqua Valley when they returned to the campus early Tuesday.
Tait took bolt cutters from a shop at the school and early Tuesday cut the wiring for three surveillance cameras on the roof as well as the battery cable for a backup generator, police said.
Johnson wore a black ski mask and used a key to the school that the boys had found months earlier to sneak into the boiler room, police said. Johnson is alleged to have intended to flip the circuit breaker and cut power to the school but a custodian confronted him.
Johnson ran from the building and called Tait, who was waiting outside, and told him to flee too, police said.
Tait, who witnesses had watched standing near an electrical box on the east side of the building with bolt cutters, fled in his silver Honda.
Tait picked up Johnson nearby and drove to their respective homes, but not before a witness jotted down Tait's license plate number, according to police.
Police said there is no indication that the boys planned anything more serious than a prank, but their behavior did warrant felony charges, said Lt. Dave Hoffman.
Police estimated the damage at $1,000.
"We feel what they did was very serious. It could have had major consequences and these were appropriate charges," Hoffman said.
Copyright © 2006, Chicago Tribune
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Post by wvhsparent on Jun 8, 2006 6:27:04 GMT -6
Teens accused of trying to cut school’s power
By Sara Hooker
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Thursday, June 08, 2006
Two Neuqua Valley High School graduates who police say attempted to cut power to the building as part of a senior prank got a shock when police showed up at their homes and arrested them.
Naperville residents Justin W. Johnson, 17, 4536 Bar Creek Lane, and Kevin W. Tait, 18, 5304 Velvet Bent Court, were arrested Tuesday and charged with one felony count of burglary. They’re accused of entering the school, 2360 95th St., early Tuesday and cutting cables to surveillance cameras, a backup electrical generator and tampering with several switches. Locks to a transformer box were also cut in an apparent attempt to create a school-wide blackout.
“This is a very serious prank,” Naperville Police Lieutenant Dave Hoffman said. “They certainly would have created a significant amount of damage and caused an extremely unsafe situation there.”
The pair, who graduated May 28, told police that they found a building key months ago and used it to enter the building several times.
Police say the two returned to the school Tuesday, the second-to-last day of class, where custodians encountered Johnson shortly before 7 a.m. wearing a ski mask and attempting to pull the breaker switches in the boiler room. He fled.
Another witness saw Tait on the east side of the school with bolt cutters near a transformer box, where he intended to cut power there and to an electrical pole after Johnson pulled the breakers, police said.
“I would certainly call it a pretty elaborate scheme and in very poor judgment,” Hoffman said.
Police tracked the teens through a license plate number retrieved off Johnson’s car.
No weapons were found and there didn’t appear to be any intent to cause physical harm to anybody, officials said.
“Though none of our students or staff were at risk during this incident, we take any act of vandalism or any action that would disrupt the educational process extremely seriously,” Principal Mike Popp said in an e-mail to parents. “We will continue to work with the police throughout their investigation of this crime.”
Police estimate damage to the three surveillance cameras at $1,000.
Johnson and Tait remained in the Will County Jail Wednesday evening on $2,000 bond.
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dailyherald.com
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Post by bob on Jun 8, 2006 7:26:07 GMT -6
Black masks and trying to cut the power. Throw the book at them. They better be thanking God that the janitor caught them. Something tragic could have happened .
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Post by wvhsparent on Jun 8, 2006 7:29:49 GMT -6
could you imagine what would have happened if one of the kids got electrocuted?
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Post by bob on Jun 8, 2006 7:40:39 GMT -6
How about instead of the janitor catching them, he calls the police and says that 2 guys in ski masks are in the school. Those two are lucky they weren't shot in this day and age.
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Post by wvhsparent on Jun 8, 2006 7:53:48 GMT -6
Not being from the south end... what subdivisions were these fine Grads from?
1 the area between 103rd and 111th and Rt 59 and Book
2 s/o 111th between rt 59 and Book.
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Post by momof3 on Jun 8, 2006 11:19:01 GMT -6
The Sun front page was so unflattering.
'School's Out For Summer'
The Write Stuff (features 203's Naper Elementary)
...And The Wrong (features 204's above story)
Meanwhile, a great story regarding Hill MS is inside on page 3.
Why did the Sun have to do a good/bad comparison on the cover pitting 203 vs. 204??
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Post by bob on Jun 8, 2006 11:48:39 GMT -6
The Sun is biased to 203 and Benet.
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Post by wvhsparent on Sept 30, 2006 10:39:56 GMT -6
Naperville teens pay price for Neuqua Valley prank
By Robert Sanchez
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Saturday, September 30, 2006
Just days after graduating from Neuqua Valley High School in June, Justin W. Johnson and Kevin W. Tait hatched a plan for a senior prank.
No one is laughing now.
Both Naperville teenagers were sentenced Friday to two years of court supervision for attempting to create a school-wide power outage at Neuqua on the second-to-last day of classes.
Johnson and Tait, both 18, also were ordered by a Will County judge to each pay more than $2,000 in restitution to their former Naperville high school and perform 250 hours of community service.
Defense attorney Stacey McCullough called the sentence fair.
But she questioned whether the damage her clients caused, including clipped surveillance camera cables and broken locks, cost more than $4,000 to fix. School officials came up with that figure.
Still, Johnson and Tait must pay the restitution amount as part of a plea deal.
Prosecutors reduced a felony burglary charge in exchange for the teens pleading guilty to a misdemeanor count of criminal damage to property.
“They are just happy to have this behind them,” McCullough said after the sentencing. “They have apologized. They are remorseful and embarrassed.”
Both young men were arrested June 6 after being accused of entering the locked school with a key they had from their drama club duties and attempting to cut power.
The plan was foiled shortly before 7 a.m. June 4 when custodians encountered Johnson wearing a ski mask and trying to pull the breaker switches in the boiler room. Johnson then fled.
Another witness saw Tait on the east side of the school with bolt cutters near a transformer box, where he intended to cut power there and to an electrical pole after Johnson pulled the breakers, authorities said.
Police tracked the teens by license plate information.
Johnson and Tait, who were high school honor students, never intended to harm anyone, McCullough said.
“They are good kids from good families,” she said. “Everyone agreed from the start it was a prank.”
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dailyherald.com
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