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Sheriff Dave Reynolds recommended two officers to
the Sheriff’s Dept. Merit Board to receive the Dept.
Life Saving Award.
Officer Steve Jenkins and Sheriff David Reynolds
Officer Dan Bocknick and Sheriff David Reynolds
The officers are Lt. Steve Jenkins, who assisted a
man who had a heart attack, and Officer Dan Bocknick,
who located a subject who had attempted suicide and
collapsed in a wooded area.
Lt. Jenkins was investigating a crash on July 27th,
2006 at 261 N. SR 2 when a man, who was the owner of
a damaged mailbox, suffered a heart attack. The
70-year-old man collapsed, lost consciousness, and
stopped breathing. Officer Jenkins requested an
ambulance and then provided life saving first aid,
including CPR, until medics arrived. The victim
survived the attack, later regained consciousness,
and Lt. Jenkins is credited for saving his life.
Officer Daniel Bocknick responded to a home at 552
St. Claire Rd. on August 17th after being
advised of a missing despondent 88-year-old man.
The man’s son indicated he had already searched the
home and nearby woods without finding his father,
but Officer Bocknick elected to recheck the areas.
The officer entered the woods, noticed what appeared
to be a slight trail in knocked-down grass, and
began following it. Officer Bocknick soon located
the victim, who had consumed antifreeze in an
attempt to end his life. Officer Bocknick summoned
an ambulance and maintained an open airway for the
unconscious man until medics arrived. The victim
later recovered and Officer Daniel Bocknick is
credited for not only locating the victim with
outstanding observational skills, but for saving his
life.
Sheriff Reynolds and Chief Deputy Dave Lain also
credited members of the department for solving a
number of other high profile cases during the past
year. Chief Lain indicated, “The Sheriff’s Dept.
has been involved in a high number of in-depth cases
during the past year, and officers and detectives
displayed a high degree of investigation and
intensity in solving almost every major case they
became involved in. It certainly shows a level of
professionalism the citizens in Porter County expect
and deserve from the Sheriff’s Department.” Some of
these cases were:
-The burglary of the Pines Elementary School on
August 8th in which a 21-year-old
Michigan City man broke into the facility, stole
several thousand dollars worth of computer
equipment, and was apprehended by patrol units
within minutes of committing the crime. All of the
stolen equipment was recovered.
-An armed robbery that occurred on July 18th
at the Spot Light Foods business on U.S. Hwy. 12 in
the Pines, in which a 25-year-old Michigan City man
injured a clerk with a knife while robbing the
business. Officers and detectives quickly obtained
information from witnesses, worked with officers
from several other jurisdictions, and arrested the
suspect within several hours of committing the
robbery. The suspect was charged with Armed Robbery
and taken into custody.
-The assault and robbery of a 65-year-old South
Haven woman at her home in Pleasant Valley Mobile
Home Park on June 7th. The attacker, a
49-year-old Valparaiso woman, fled the scene in the
victim’s car, and left the Porter County area.
Detectives immediately contacted police agencies in
several areas where the woman was believed to be
headed, and information on the case was provided to
Crime Stoppers, which received a tip that led to the
apprehension of the suspect in Santa Clause, IN.
Again, cooperation between multiple agencies and the
quick response to the incident were extremely
important in the arrest.
-The arrest of two subjects, a 25-year-old man and a
28-year old man, both from Valparaiso, who were
involved in multiple smash-and-grab burglaries of
convenience stores in Porter County during the first
three months of 2006. Two alert patrol officers,
one from the Sheriff’s Dept. and the second from the
Porter Police Dept., located and pursued the
suspects as they fled the scene of one of the
crimes, which occurred on March 26th at
Virk’s Mart on U.S. Hwy. 12 in Pine Twp. The
officers arrested the men following a vehicle
pursuit, crash, and foot chase. Detectives quickly
tied the suspects to several other similar crimes in
Porter and La Porte counties, and the men, who were
convicted felons, face numerous additional felony
charges in both counties.
-The arrest of two men involved in a brutal home
invasion on a case that had been unsolved for
several years. Detectives determined one of the
men, a 44-year-old Valparaiso resident, had been the
individual who entered the home of a Valparaiso
physician six years ago, and brutally attacked the
doctor and his wife. Detectives determined the two
men had been involved in several burglaries in
Porter County within the past year, and diligent
investigation connected them to the home invasion.
The men were both convicted of the crimes, and the
attacker, who had been released from prison less
than a month before the attack, was sentenced to 44
years in prison.
-The arrest of a 42-year-old Lake Eliza man who
committed at least two smash-and-grab burglaries of
convenience stores in Porter County prior to July,
2006. Detectives obtained information on a possible
suspect and vehicle from a burglary on July 10th
at the Family Express on Burlington Beach Rd., and
provided the patrol division with the information.
Responding patrol units to another burglary at the
Always Open store at U.S. Hwy. 6 and North Calumet
Ave. on July 13th recognized a suspect
vehicle and stopped it, which led to the arrest of
the suspect and the recovery of numerous stolen
items.
-The arrest of several juveniles who had been
involved in multiple crimes of thefts from vehicles
and burglaries prior to April 22nd in
Porter County. Two detectives on a stakeout of the
Woods of the Winding Creek area, which had been
targeted repeatedly, observed a suspicious vehicle,
stopped it, and their investigation led to the
recovery of stolen items and solving numerous
cases. The suspects had just left the scene of
several crimes when they were stopped and arrested.
-The arrest and conviction of a 30-year-old Union
Township man who killed an 18-month-old child of his
fiance’ while in a rage of anger. The man was
watching the child, became angry, and killed the
infant by shaking and throwing him onto a bed. The
man was later convicted of homicide after a jury
deliberated only 6 hours, and Detectives and
officers were complimented for a diligent
investigation which led to the quick conviction.
-The arrest of a 21-year-old Union Twp. man who
committed and armed robbery at the Hop-n-Stop
convenience store on U.S. Hwy. 30 on June 26th.
Detectives began an intensive investigation,
developed a possible suspect, and then began a
stakeout in which the suspect was observed buying
and delivering a large amount of drugs. He was
arrested following assistance from patrol officers
and was charged with numerous felonies, including
armed robbery and possession of controlled
substances.
-An extremely involved case involving the arrest of
a 37-year-old South Haven man in September, 2006,
who repeatedly raped, molested and tortured a
12-year old girl, and molested two other children at
his home on Acadia St. The man is currently in
custody and faces over 100 years in prison as a
result of his arrest, which followed hundreds of
hours of investigation.
-The arrest of 15 men in August, 2006, who attempted
to lure underage girls into having sexual relations,
contacting their victims via the internet. The
“girls” turned out to be officers from the Sheriff’s
Dept. and several other local, state, and federal
agencies, and the men were arrested, many after
arriving at a house they believed their victims to
reside in. The suspects are being held with no bond
and face federal charges that may result in life
imprisonment.
-The burglary of Kaboom Fireworks on U.S. 30 in
Valparaiso on Sept. 12th in which two
juveniles and an 18-year-old Valpo man entered the
building and removed items. An extremely quick
response by patrol units from the Sheriff’s Dept.
and Valparaiso police resulted in the capture of all
three suspects and the recovery of the stolen
property.
-The arrest of 4 Center Township juveniles in
October, 2006, who were involved in over a hundred
thefts from vehicles, several burglaries, vehicle
thefts, and vandalism in Center, Portage, and Union
Townships during the previous several months. Alert
patrol officers obtained information and provided it
to detectives, who were able to determine the
suspects were involved in a major crime wave in
Porter County. The suspects were all charged with
multiple felony counts and arrested.
-The arson and burglary of the Liberty Recreation
concession stand in Liberty Twp. on October 18th
that led to felony charges against two Liberty Twp.
juveniles. Detectives obtained information on the
suspects, and diligent investigation led to their
confessions and charges being filed. |
