DeKalb city officials recognize car dealership staff after stabbing attack

DeKALB – DeKalb Mayor Cohen Barnes joined members of the City Council this month to recognize staff from Brian Bemis Toyota car dealership for how they handled themselves in an October 2024 stabbing.

Police responded to the dealership, 1890 Sycamore Road, about midday after multiple employees called 911 to report a man attacking them with two knives. One employee suffered a stab wound. Police Chief David Byrd and officer Brian Bollow arrived first to the dealership and shot the man, Charles M. Tripicchio, when he refused to comply with multiple orders to put the knives down, according to court records and body-camera footage released by Illinois State Police.

“I know it had to be pretty chaotic, but you all focused on each other,” Barnes said during a Jan. 13 City Council meeting. “You all focused on trying to de-escalate. You all focused on working with our officers when they rolled up into Brian Bemis. I can’t say enough about the amount of courage something like that takes.”

Barnes commended what he called the police department’s fast response, which came hours after authorities responded to a fatal police shooting in rural DeKalb Township that morning. Byrd and Bollow’s actions were ruled justified by former DeKalb County State’s Attorney Rick Amato, who declined to file charges.

Tripicchio, who survived the shooting and has been released from the hospital, faces criminal charges in the attack, including armed violence and attempted armed robbery. He pleaded not guilty to the charges this month, and his case remains pending trial, court records show.

At the meeting, Barnes also commended Brian Bemis staff for maintaining their composure.

“I think the situation probably would have been much worse if not but for the staff at Brian Bemis and how well you all conducted yourselves in an event like that to try and, again, protect each other, to try and de-escalate, and try and make sure that no one else in the organization was hurt,” Barnes said.