Crime & Safety

Elmhurst Police Give Chase to Three Drivers Over the Weekend

Two were charged with DUI and fleeing and eluding, the third suspect got away.

Melina M. Cossi, 34, 939 W. Madison, Chicago, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, fleeing and eluding, speeding, failure to yield to an emergency vehicle and driving without insurance at 12:48 a.m. Feb. 25. Officers attempted to stop Cossi for speeding, but Cossi’s vehicle made several turns and accelerated in an attempt to get away. The vehicle eventually stopped near St. Charles Road and Lawndale. Officers said Cossi was driving 66 miles per hour in a 30 mile per hour zone. Cossi was released on I-bond.

While on patrol at 2:28 a.m. Feb. 25 on the 600 block of North York Road, officers saw a man in his mid-20s slumped over the steering wheel of a vehicle. Officers learned the vehicle was reported stolen out of Wood Dale. When officers woke the suspect, he fled the scene, striking several squad cars in the process. They chased the suspect into Franklin Park, and he eventually fled on foot in Wood Dale. A search was conducted, but police were unable to locate him.

Javier Hernandez-Mota, 32, 52428 Green Oaks #6, Addison, was arrested at 2:25 a.m. Feb. 27, at 650 W. Grand Ave. Police received a call for a suspicious vehicle in a driveway. When they approached the vehicle, Hernandez-Mota drove off. Officers then stopped the white Pontiac Sunfire, asked Hernandez-Mota to get out of the car, and he drove off again. Officers chased him, and he abandoned the car in a car dealership lot after striking a parked vehicle. He left the keys in his car and jumped over a barbed wire fence. He was taken into custody on the other side of the fence, and was found to have a warrant out of DuPage County for DUI. They also discovered he was suspended on two different drivers licenses for DUI. He was taken to the police department, but due to a wound he received jumping the fence, he was taken to Elmhurst Memorial Hospital. He was later charged with aggravated DUI, failure to yield, improper lane use, no insurance, driving with a suspended license, and fleeing and eluding. He was taken to DuPage County Jail.

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