Police remove man from Fox River in Johnsburg

A man jumped into the Fox River in Johnsburg on Friday during a police situation.

Dave Harwood, Batallion Chief for the McHenry Township Fire Protection District, said Johnsburg police called the fire district out to the scene at River Terrace Drive about 3:30 p.m. Friday. But when the fire district arrived, the man was out of the water.

Johnsburg police did not respond to an inquiry Friday.

Chris Altman lives on the river and said he was working at home when he saw a head in the water Friday afternoon.

Altman said it was raining when he went outside and saw police officers were on his neighbor’s pier trying to bring the person, whom he described as an older teenager, in from the water.

Altman said that a neighbor and the police got on a life raft. It appeared the young person was trying to elude law enforcement, although he eventually got in the life raft, Altman said.

Altman said he’d asked the young person if he knew how to swim and he said he did.

Altman added he would have hopped in his boat in a “heartbeat” if needed.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office also had been called to the scene to assist with a water rescue, but the person was “pulled to safety quickly and we discontinued our response,” Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said.