Man Caught Peeing On Crystal Lake Shop's Rug Had No 'Explanation'

CRYSTAL LAKE, IL — A Niles man has been cited by police after he was caught on camera urinating on a rug just after 12:30 p.m. Monday at a local business, according to Crystal Lake police. Jim Costa, 69, was identified by police Thursday as the man seen on surveillance video entering the business in the 600 block of Terra Cotta Avenue to solicit roofing repair work, and urinating on the floor, Crystal Lake Deputy Police Chief Thomas Kotlowski confirmed to Patch.

Kotlowski said officers arrived and met with the business owner, who explained a man entered the business and solicited roofing repair work. After he left, the woman reviewed the surveillance footage and noticed the man urinated on the floor prior to meeting with her, Kotlowski told Patch. He can also be seen using hand sanitizer at the front desk before speaking with the employee.

"Before he left, he provided a flyer with the company name and a phone number with a few numbers that were not legible," Kotlowski told Patch. "We made several calls to various phone numbers in an attempt to locate and ID the man. Eventually one of the numbers turned out to be correct."

According to Kotlowski, the roofing business was claimed to be from Skokie. Police set up a fake meeting Thursday for the man to give a roofing repair estimate. The man arrived at 10:30 a.m. to the requested location and according to Kotlowski, was driving the same car seen in the video.

Costa's driver's license photo matched the man in the surveillance video, Kotlowski added. He was issued an adjudication citation for disorderly conduct, a local ordinance punishable by a fine ranging from $75 to $1,000.

According to Kotlowski, Costa didn't have a reasonable explanation for his actions.