False Armed Robbery, Real Gun Found After Evanston Hit-And-Run: Cops

EVANSTON, IL — An investigation into a hit-and-run crash near St. Francis Hospital in Evanston led to felony charges for two men this week.

Renaldo Tillmon, 42, of Champaign, was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a felony, and misdemeanor possession of ammunition, hit-and-run causing damage to city property and failure to produce a license, according to court records.

Terry Ross, 42, of Evanston, was charged with one count of felony disorderly conduct after authorities said he called 911 and made a false report of an armed robbery in an apparent attempt to prevent police from finding the gun Tillmon is charged with possessing.

Evanston police got a call of a a one-car hit-and-run crash near the intersection of Sherman Avenue and Mulford Street around 3:30 a.m. on Monday morning, prosecutors said at Ross' and Tillmon's initial court appearances in Skokie, held Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

Witnesses told dispatchers an older sedan with large rims crashed into a tarffic sign and a tree, according to police.

Officers canvassing the area of the crash found Tillmon and Shaw standing near a heavily damaged car that matched the description of the one dispatchers had been told was involved in the crash, according to Assistant State's Attorney Jenna Reinhardt.

"While conducting this hit-and-run investigation, officers were briefly called away for reports of an armed robbery in the area," Reinhardt said.

Evanston police went to the area where a 911 caller had claimed there had been a robbery but found no indication that a crime had taken place there, according to the prosecutor.

"Evanston dispatch was able to determine that this call was made by Terry Ross," she said.

Prosecutors said Ross admitted making the false 911 call and Tillmon admitted having driven the car.

According to police and prosecutors, a search of the car later turned up a black bag with a loaded 9 mm pistol, banking paperwork in Tillmon's name and an expired insurance card in his name for the car.

Ross was represented at his hearing by Assistant Public Defender Greg Kobus, who explained that he wakes up at 4:30 a.m. daily to get to work at a local grocery store.

Tillmon's attorney, Mark Keenan, said his client had moved downstate in recent years, where he and his wife were gainfully employed. Tillmon had been in town for his father's funeral and was very distraught about it, Keenan said, suggesting the evidence would sort itself out in time and that his client was working as a cook at a senior living facility and trying to turn his life around.

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Cook County Associate Judge Anthony Calabrese ordered that Tillmon must pay $500 cash to secure his pretrial release, while he ordered Shaw to post $2,500 to get out of jail while awaiting trial.

"Typically, the possession of a firearm is [an offense] that I take extraordinarily seriously and have been known to set rather high bonds in regards those kinds of allegations, that is initially where I intended to go regarding this matter," Calabrese explained.

"The only thing that has stood in the way of a more significant bond is representations made by Mr. Keenan regarding his change of scenery and now residing in Champaign County," the judge said. "A successful relationship with his wife and child and turn of events with his work history, her work history, and the success they've had there is a significantly mitigating factor for purposes of setting bond."