Police: Hit-and-Run, Illegal Transportation of Alcohol

Illegal Transportation of Alcohol, No Valid Drivers License, Obstructing Identification

Officers responding to a hit-and-run in the area of 67th and Powell on October 2 around 6 p.m. spoke to a witness who identified the offending car in the hit-and-run as a teal car occupied by two male hispanics. Officers responding in the area observed a teal Ford Thunderbird with two passengers being driven by a hispanic male. The officer caught up to the vehicle which quickly turned into a Walgreens lot on Lemont Road. The officer followed the vehicle into the lot and effected a traffic stop.

The driver immediately exited the vehicle and walked in the direction of the Walgreens and was ordered to return to the vehicle by the officer. At the same time, a passenger in the back also got out of the car, and was ordered back in by the officer and backup was called. The officer spoke to the driver, Luis Antonio Muniz-Ramirez, 28 of 2028 Country Club Drive in Woodridge, who told the officer he didn't have a drivers license. When asked about the hit-and-run, Muniz-Ramirez told the officer he wasn't involved in an accident and his two friends in the vehicle had just picked him up from work. Muniz-Ramirez was placed under arrest for driving without a valid drivers license. A search of Muniz-Ramirez resulted in officers finding a “one-hitter” in Muniz-Ramirez's possession.

As the officer walked toward the front of the vehicle to check for damage related to the hit-and-run the officer noticed several open bottles of beer in the car. Speaking with the other passengers in the car with translation help from Muniz-Ramirez, it was learned the front seat passenger—Gerardo Segundo, 29 of 50 W. 65th Street, Westmont—was wanted on a warrant through DuPage County. Segundo was taken into custody.

Muniz-Ramirez told officers the backseat passenger—later identified as Carlos Sanches, 26 of 2218 Country Club Drive, Woodridge—was the driver when Muniz-Ramirez was picked up. Muniz-Ramirez said he offered to drive when picked up as the other two men had been drinking. Sanches was taken into custody and his identification was subsequently learned and officers learned he was also wanted on a warrant through DuPage County. A complaint against Sanches was subsequently made for obstructing identification. Sanches and Segundo were issued citations for illegal transportation of alcohol, and Muniz-Ramirez was charged with not having a valid drivers license. The men were released after posting bond.

Also, during the traffic stop the witness arrived on the scene with additional officers and identified the vehicle as the one involved in the hit-and-run.