Sergeant honored for nabbing suspects
By Steve Metsch smetsch@southtownstar.com June 4, 2012 11:06PM
Updated: July 7, 2012 8:28AM
The off-duty Tinley Park Police sergeant who apprehended five men in connection with the brutal attacks at the Ashford House last month will be honored Tuesday night by the village board.
Board members will honor Sgt. Lori Mason at their 8 p.m. meeting in the village hall, 16250 S. Oak Park Ave., village manager Scott Niehaus said Monday.
“A lot of people take for granted what the police and fire departments do,” Niehaus said. “This is some recognition for what she did.”
Eighteen masked attackers stormed the Ashford House during the May 19 lunch hour, attacking diners with bats and batons, among other things, and busting up the restaurant. Ten people were injured in the attack, and three needed medical treatment at the local hospital.
Authorities have said the attackers were targeting a group they believed to be part of a white supremacist organization.
Five Indiana men were charged with felony mob action, aggravated battery and criminal damage to property for their alleged roles in the attack. John Tucker, 26, of Martinsville, Ind.,; Cody Sutherlin, 23, of Bloomington, Ind.; Dylan Sutherlin, 20, and Jason Sutherlin, 33, both of Gosport, Ind.; and Alex Stuck, 22, of Bloomington, Ind., remain in custody at the Cook County and are due in court June 12, according to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office website.
Mason was driving her squad car when she pulled over a car that contained five suspects and detained them until backup arrived on March 19. Niehaus said that Mason’s action is proof that the village’s take-home policy for squad cars is a good one.
“At times, we get criticized for letting officers take home their vehicles, but she was not on duty and heard the call. If she was in her personal car, does she make this stop?” Niehaus said. “Probably not.”
Tinley Park Police Chief Steve Neubauer said the policy works. Mason heard a description of the offenders’ vehicles over the radio, spotted one of them and stopped it. Police found weapons and hoodies in their car, he said.
“This was the break we needed in the case,” Neubauer said. “She was in the right place at the right time.”
