Suspects Streator police call ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ held (for now) on new felonies

The police searched the truck Sunday and found binoculars and bolt cutters in the cab. The trailer they were hauling was stolen. Both driver and passenger had been previously granted pre-trial release.

One of the occupants was Nicholas Huber, 36, of Streator better known as “Clyde,” a moniker Streator police have used in news releases. He was on pre-trial release with GPS monitoring. This time, prosecutors want Huber kept in jail on new charges of theft and possession of burglary tools.

Tuesday, however, La Salle County Judge Michael C. Jansz ordered Huber detained only until pre-trial services could explore the possibility of placing him on confinement. Jansz requested more information and ordered Huber to return Wednesday to resume the issue of detention.

During the detention hearing Tuesday in La Salle County Circuit Court, Assistant La Salle County State’s Kelley Porter asked the judge not to let Huber plead ignorance and say he was unaware of any conditions of pre-trial release. Huber, she said, was granted pre-trial release in three other counties (Livingston, Kendall and Grundy) where he’s facing charges.

“If there’s anybody who should be well aware of those conditions, it’s this defendant,” Porter said.

Huber’s latest charges were filed Sunday after La Salle County sheriff’s deputies were alerted to an attempted burglary at an unspecified location in rural La Salle County. The property owner spotted a truck occupied by two men and tried to stop them, only to be struck by the trailer as the truck sped away, police said.

The property owner pursued the duo in his own vehicle. He then saw the truck stop and took note of the driver, later identified as Jacob Sokol, according to prosecutors. He also was charged with felonies and ordered detained Tuesday.

Huber then took the wheel and drove into Streator, where police used stop sticks to halt the truck.

The trailer was found to have been stolen out of Marshall County, police said. Huber, when questioned, acknowledged he was driving around looking for items to steal, Porter said. She said Huber is a danger to society and cannot be entrusted with any conditions of pre-trial release.

In response, Public Defender Ryan Hamer acknowledged Huber has charges in multiple jurisdictions – “And it is a little bit confusing,” he admitted – but said the evidence against Huber is shaky. Hamer suggested it was Sokol who is the prime culprit and Huber may simply have been along for the ride.

“It’s a really weak case, frankly,” Hamer said.

Jansz will settle the issue Wednesday.

Streator police assigned Huber and Ashley Moats the “Bonnie and Clyde” moniker after a series of burglaries, primarily to unlocked vehicles, and to thefts from retail establishments. Moats, 32, of Streator faces seven felony counts led by burglary.