4 teens charged with impersonating cop in suburban Chicago

WHEATON (Sun-Times Media Wire) - Four men have been charged with impersonating a police officer this week in unincorporated West Chicago.

Corey Abendroth, Luke Halstead and Thomas Kozie, all 19, and Khoung Dam, 22, are each charged with five counts of impersonation of a peace officer, according to the DuPage County sheriff’s and state’s attorney’s offices.

Kozie, who lives in Oak Park, is accused of ringing the doorbell of a home near Morningside Avenue and High Lake Road at 10:03 p.m. on June 3 while wearing a suit and a badge on his belt, prosecutors said. He introduced himself as “Jeff Rushmore,” claiming to be an investigator with the Winfield Police Department working on a missing person case.

After speaking with the homeowner, he got into a car where Halstead, Abendroth and Dam were waiting and the trio drove off, the state’s attorney’s office said. They drove to multiple homes in West Chicago, Wheaton and Winfield and did the same thing.

Several residents called police to report the incidents, and some of the interactions with Kozie were recorded by video doorbells, authorities said.

They were arrested Thursday following an investigation led by the sheriff’s office and the Wheaton and Winfield police departments.

All four men appeared for a bail hearing Friday, prosecutors said. Their bails were set at $35,000 for Kozie, $20,000 for Halstead, $7,500 for Abendroth, and $4,000 for Dam. Kozie’s next court date was set for July 11.

Halstead, who lives in Winfield, is due back in court July 8, while Abendroth, who lives in Wheaton, is due back in court July 9, the state’s attorney’s office said. Dam, of Carol Stream, is scheduled to appear in court again July 10.