Patch Exclusive: Slapped City Councilman Talked an Awful Lot About Shooting People, Witnesses Say

JOLIET, IL — A Joliet city councilman who was slapped and bloodied in a west side bar had been threatening to shoot someone, according to numerous witnesses quoted in unpublicized police reports recently obtained by Patch.

One witness told police he heard Councilman Larry Hug “say something ... about putting a bullet” in a real estate broker’s head, a report said.

Hug reportedly told the real estate broker he would “put a bullet in your head and kick your ass” and also “shoot you in the face and punch you like a 12-year-old,” according to a second witness.

A third witness reportedly told of Hug boasting, “I carry a gun too and can shoot you,” and a fourth said the councilman claimed, “I have a concealed carry license and I can shoot you and get away with it,” according to police reports describing the March incident.

The man Hug was supposedly threatening to shoot, 46-year-old Mark Koenig, was caught on video repeatedly slapping the city councilman in the smoking enclosure of the Double J, “Joliet's Favorite Westside Neighborhood Bar!”

Despite this overwhelming video evidence, the criminal complaint eventually filed against Koenig accused him only of “pointing his finger at Larry Hug while speaking to Larry Hug in a loud tone of voice” and made no mention at all of him touching the councilman, not to mention slapping him at least three times.

Koenig pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct last week. He was fined $500.

In a telephone interview, Hug denied threatening to shoot Koenig or anyone else. He also said he does not hold a concealed carry license and was not armed that night.

“Do I carry a weapon?” Hug said. “No.”

The reports obtained by Patch also included a written statement from Hug. In the statement, Hug says that prior to stopping off at the Double J, he had been at a meeting in the Cathedral neighborhood. After he arrived at the bar, he ordered a drink and was approached by someone he identifies only as “Mark” and whose name is always written in quotation marks in the statement. In the statement, Hug said “Mark” told him he “recognized me and had ‘supported’ and ‘voted’ for me.”

Hug said he then joined County Board Member Annette Parker and her husband, Brian Parker, at a table, and so did “Mark.” Hug and Annette Parker then discussed the beleaguered Rialto Square Theatre, where she works as the director of marketing and sales, the statement said.

At one point, Hug said, “Mark” followed him into the smoking enclosure, where they “continued to discuss the Rialto and other City of Joliet issues.”

“Suddenly, ‘Mark’ became clearly agitated and started declaring that only people born and raised in Joliet should be elected or hired to run the city because ‘outsiders don’t know what the city needs,’” Hug said.

“Mark” also repeatedly asked Hug — who is from Mokena — where he was born, according to the statement but also apologized for “acting like a d--k.”

Later in the evening, Hug, “Mark” and the Parkers gathered in the smoking enclosure. While they were there, “‘Mark’ began yelling ‘F--king Mexicans,’ ‘F--k the Mexicans,’” the report said, apparently in reference to a “Latino man” who had been at their table a short time before.

The statement said Hug asked, “What are you talking about. Your buddy that just left is Latino,” and “Mark” responded: “He’s a Marine, he’s a Marine, he’s a Marine” then “suddenly lunged forward, pushing past Brian who was between us, and hit me three times in the nose with an open hand.”

One witness who informed the police that Hug had threatened to shoot someone, Carlos Tinoco of Channahon, previously told Patch about the shooting threat as well. Tinoco, who served with the Marines, also told Patch — and the police — that Hug referred to him by a slur and made other distasteful comments.

Hug was “talking s--t about everything and everyone,” said Tinoco, who claimed the councilman called him a “spic,” ripped on the Marines, and also mocked Channahon’s last two mayors.

“He went too far with his comments and he got bitch slapped,” Tinoco said.

Hug has denied saying anything attributed to him by Tinoco.

Koenig declined to comment on the incident, other than to say, “Please just read the police reports.”

Like Tinoco, Brian Parker told police he heard Hug threaten to shoot someone, a report said. But Brian Parker, an employee with the Will County Land Use Department, also lied to the police about witnessing Koenig’s attack on Hug, claiming “he did not see the battery occur,” a report said. Brian Parker did reportedly accuse Hug of threatening both him and his wife after the police arrived at the Double J.

“While speaking with others on scene, I heard Brian loudly yelling to Larry to stop threatening him,” an officer said in a report.

“Brian was very upset saying that Larry had threatened his wife and he should not be allowed to use his office to make threats,” the officer said.

Hug had wanted Brian Parker to tell the police Koenig’s last name, which he initially did not do, according to reports. Brian Parker reportedly later explained “he didn’t want to get involved.”

Due to Annette Parker’s place on the county board and her husband’s employment with the county, a special prosecutor was appointed to Koenig’s case. Joliet City Attorney Marty Shanahan had previously produced police reports on the incident at Patch’s request but thoroughly redacted them — with the blessing of the Illinois Attorney General’s Office — effectively hiding the Parkers’ statements from the from the public.

The reports obtained by Patch show Annette Parker did not tell the police that Hug said anything about shooting anyone. She did hear a “conversation about veterans or Marines but couldn’t recall exactly what was said just prior to the event,” a report said.

Brian Parker failed to respond when asked to discuss the matter.

Hug suggested the witnesses accusing him of making gun threats and other untoward comments all know each other from the Double J and that they lied to the police for Koenig’s sake.

“I don’t know for sure, but I suspect it may have something to do with protecting his (real estate) license so he can make a living,” Hug said.

“My best advice in life is, tell the truth,” he said. “Pick a lane and stick in it.”

The other two witnesses who reportedly told police that Hug mentioned shooting someone were Joliet resident Phillip Cundari, 23, and Double J Thursday night DJ Adam Kolodziej.

Cundari saw Hug and another man “engage in a debate about Joliet” and said “Hug appeared to be the aggressor during the argument,” a report said.

“Cundari stated that he overheard Hug say something to the suspect about putting a bullet in the suspect’s head,” according to the report.

At the time of the argument, Kolodziej was standing outside the smoking enclosure, a report said, but “due to the walls of the smoking room being thin, he could hear what Hug was saying.”

“According to Kolodziej, he heard Hug say ’F--k you,’ ‘F--k your neighborhood,’ ‘I have a concealed carry license and I can shoot you and get away with it,’” the report said.

“Kolodziej stated he notified the bartender of the argument,” the report said. “A short time later, the physical altercation happened,” but Kolodziej missed that part.

Photo via Joliet Police Department