Man charged with stealing ‘hundreds' of campaign signs in Elgin

(SUN TIMES MEDIA WIRE) - A man has been charged with stealing “hundreds” of campaign lawn signs in northwest suburban Elgin.

Elgin City Council member Richard Dunne contacted police Saturday to report that one of his re-election campaign signs in the 300 block of South Randall Road in Elgin had been stolen for the third time, according to Elgin police.

Further investigation revealed that other campaign signs had also been stolen from the area near Chicago Street and Shales Parkway.

Detectives eventually identified 65-year-old Randolph Hopp as a suspect, police said. They went to his Elgin home on Wednesday and found “hundreds of campaign signs from several different area politicians.”

Hopp was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor count of theft, police said. He was released after posting bond.

He recently ran for the Gail Borden Library Board of Trustees, but was unsuccessful.