Vehicle theft prompts soft lockdown at Huntley School District 158's Reed Road Campus

Huntley School District 158 facilities on the Reed Road Campus were placed on soft lockdown as a precautionary measure Wednesday morning after a reported vehicle theft in the area, according to a news release from the Huntley Police Department.

Two suspects are in custody in connection with the incident, police said.

About 8:45 a.m., Huntley police were notified of a stolen vehicle traveling west on Reed Road toward Route 47 that had fled from a Lake in the Hills traffic stop, according to the release.

The vehicle later was spotted about 9 a.m. after reportedly striking a light pole at Chetwood and Boudreaux drives. A male suspect exited the vehicle, and police later found a handgun in the area of the crash, according to the release.

A witness saw the vehicle entering a residential garage on Buckingham Court, which is part of a subdivision adjacent to the Reed Road Campus. The campus is composed of the Early Childhood Center, Chesak Elementary, Martin Elementary and Marlowe Middle schools.

When residents of the Buckingham Court home refused to vacate, a search warrant was executed. Police recovered the stolen vehicle and took two suspects into custody, the release stated.

After being informed of the situation, Reed Road Campus schools were put on soft lockdown, which prevents anyone from entering or exiting the building but allows operations to continue as normal. Lake in the Hills police communications coordinator Ashley Eccles said the incident did not involve students or staff at the schools and did not pose an immediate threat to school safety.

The lockdown was lifted about
1 p.m. after Huntley and Lake in the Hills police completed their initial response to the incident and found no cause for the continuation of the precautionary measure, according to a message on District 158's Facebook page.

“We apologize for the delays and inconveniences this incident has caused, and thank you for your patience while we have worked with our law enforcement partners in response to this incident,” the post read. “We have been in close contact with our local law enforcement partners throughout the course of their response, and we thank them for their dedicated efforts to maintain safety within our community.”

Huntley police continue to investigate.