Latest Lake County Courthouse Firing: Guard Allegedly Steals Cash At Security Checkpoint
(STMW) -- For the third time this year a security contractor working for the Lake County courthouse has been arrested and fired from a security position, the Lake County News-Sun is reporting.
Niktia McClain, 28, of the 4200 block of Hickory Hills Drive in Waukegan, was arrested Wednesday, Sept. 24, after allegedly stealing money from a person who was passing through security.
McClain was charged with theft under $500, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
A sheriff's office spokesperson said McClain was working the checkpoint at the Lake County Courthouse Babcox entrance at 20 S. County St.
The alleged theft occurred Tuesday, Sept. 23, when a courthouse visitor placed $100 in a security bin with the rest of his belongings, police said.
The visitor told police he placed $100 in the bin and it was missing when he went to pick up his belongings.
McClain was released on $150 bail and was given a court date of Oct. 16.
Police said she works for U.S. Securities, which mans the courthouse's security checkpoints. The rest of the courthouse building is patrolled by Lake County Sheriff's deputies.
Sgt. Sara Balmes said the sheriff's office requested that McClain be fired immediately and the company complied.
In June, a court security guard working the county's juvenile complex in Vernon Hills was arrested for allegedly pleasuring himself outside two different retail establishments. A second incident occurred while he was out on bail for a first arrest, police said.
William J. Westby, 20, of 851 Adams St., Waukegan, was charged with aggravated battery and two counts of public indecency in connection with the two incidents.
He was also fired from U.S. Securities after a request was made by the sheriff's office.
In May, Richard McDaniel, 46, of Round Lake Beach, was arrested for allegedly bringing a novelty toy gun into the Lake County Courthouse. McDaniel entered the courthouse's secondary entrance on Washington Street and got past security with a roughly 3-inch cigarette lighter in the shape of a gun, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
The most serious charge of aggravated battery was dropped and the case was moved to misdemeanor court.
McDaniel, who also had been an employee of the security firm that screens entrances to the Lake County Building and Courthouse, was terminated immediately following the incident.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2014. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
