Joliet 'Army Sniper Who Snapped' Inside East Side Home Makes Will County's Wanted Poster: Sheriff

JOLIET, IL — The Will County Sheriff's Office has posted a Warrant Wednesday mugshot for Erik Aviles, now 47, who is wanted for the crime of unlawful restraint. His last known address was the 500 block of Irving Street, which is where Aviles was the subject of a Joliet police standoff inside his east-side neighborhood which ultimately resulted in his surrender.

On Jan. 9, Patch reported that Joliet Police Chief Bill Evans, along with at least 50 Joliet police officers were on the scene of a standoff with Aviles, who, ultimately, raised both of his hands high into the air and came out of the house on Irving Street, surrendering peacefully.

At the time, court files said that Aviles, an Army sniper, "just snapped" and he had a gun pointed at a woman, as well as having a gun and a knife in his living room, along with a bullet-proof vest and gas mask.

Joliet Patch saw the Joliet police force put Aviles into the backseat of a squad car and drive off, as the SWAT team remained behind, making sure there were not any explosives, loaded guns or other criminal suspects hiding somewhere in the house.

Joliet police spokesman Dwayne English said that at 12:43 p.m. Jan. 9, officers responded to the 500 block of Irving Street for a disturbance involving a handgun. The officers made contact with an adult man and female who reported being threatened with a handgun by the homeowner, later identified as Aviles, during a house cleaning appointment.

Aviles had hired the cleaning service through an online platform, and the workers arrived at his home at approximately 9:30 a.m.

Near the end of the appointment, Aviles reportedly became angry and accused the man and woman of stealing. At that point, Aviles retrieved a handgun from a nearby couch and pointed it at the male victim, according to police.

When the male and female tried to leave, Aviles allegedly grabbed the woman by her jacket and used his arm to press her against the door, preventing her escape. He is further accused of holding the handgun to her head and body before ordering her to leave the house.

Both victims eventually fled the home safely, police said.

On Jan. 13, Joliet Patch reported that Aviles was being charged with unlawful restraint, theft of services and two counts of battery. The Will County State's Attorney's Office's successful petition to deny pretrial release pointed out that 10 years ago, in Cook County, Aviles committed the crime of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and in that crime, employees from Rent-A-Center showed up at Aviles' apartment and rang his doorbell about an overdue payment.

Aviles came out of the lobby saying, "What the f*** do you guys want?" while pointing a black 9 mm handgun at the victim's head, court files said. Aviles reportedly told the Rent-A-Center employee, "Next time I see you, I'll shoot you in the foot." Aviles then went back into his apartment, where he had a rifle under his pillow and a loaded 9 mm handgun in his bedroom with one unloaded magazine and one loaded magazine with 16 bullets, court files show.

Although Will County Judge Amy Christiansen ruled in favor of Aviles' pretrial detention back in January, Aviles was let out of the Will County Jail after more than four months in custody, on May 19.

In January, Patch reported that the owner of Warren Cleaning Services notified Joliet police he was contacted by Aviles for cleaning services. Aviles told the owner of the cleaning company that he, Aviles, was a military sniper who now teaches people to shoot. A total of three employees came to Aviles' house on Irving Street, and when they went to inspect the house, they "saw dog feces everywhere," court documents note.

Now, nobody in Will County law enforcement can find him.