Wanted Fugitive Arrested In Vernon Hills Hotel

LAKE COUNTY, IL — A felon wanted on armed kidnapping and robbery charges was taken into custody in Vernon Hills Thursday, authorities said. The Lake County Sheriff's Office Warrants Team and the U.S. Marshals Service - Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force apprehended the man at a hotel in the 400 block of Milwaukee Avenue where Willie A. Johnson, III, 25, had been staying.

Johnson, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was wanted on a no-bond warrant out of Broward County, Florida, authorities said.

On New Year's Day, local authorities learned Johnson may be in the Lake County area. Members of the sheriff's office's warrants team learned Johnson was staying in the hotel on North Milwaukee Avenue and determined his room number.

The warrants team, tactical response team and canine team entered the hotel room and took Johnson into custody without incident. He was taken to the Lake County Jail where he is being held pending extradition to Florida.