$50,000 Damage: Minooka Man Must Be Jailed, Glasgow Staff Implores

MINOOKA, IL — Matt Karnas' continued threats to harm his ex-wife, her family, his own divorce lawyer and the man whose legs he injured Feb. 11 by using his truck as a deadly weapon, causing $50,000 damage, are all reasons cited by Assistant Will County State's Attorney Lauren Senko to have the 40-year-old Minooka man kept inside the Will County Jail.

On Friday morning, Will County Judge Donald DeWilkins could decide the fate of Karnas, who has remained free since the Feb. 11 incident damaged his adversary's Jeep, Audi, F100 truck, plus a 1931 Ford Model A, a 1926 Ford Journey and a 1963 Ford Lotus concept go-kart, according to the petition to deny pretrial release.

"It's the people's position that this offense is deadly and violent in nature because a vehicle was used to pin (the victim) by his legs, which in turn caused disfigurement to (his) body ... As a result of this incident, (his) hip was displaced," Senko's petition outlined.

The Will County State's Attorney's Office has charged Karnas with seven crimes:

• Disorderly conduct
• Failure to stop after having an accident involving personal injury or death
• Criminal damage to property, two counts
• Criminal damage to property between $10,000 and $100,000
• Criminal damage to property less than $10,000
• Aggravated battery involving a deadly weapon

According to the petition to deny pretrial release for Karnas, who turns 40 this month:

In 2022, an order of protection petition was obtained by his ex-wife after Karnas "threatened to knock (her) teeth out," and threatened to decapitate her and her father, as well as vowing he would "drag (her) family across a desert," prosecutors noted.

As for the Feb. 11 incident on Hickory Court in Minooka, Karnas is accused of reversing his pickup truck into the other man's parked Jeep, smashing into the man's garage door, pinning the man's legs and leaving the man's hip displaced.

According to the petition, Will County Sheriff's deputies saw damage to a Jeep, Audi and F100 truck in the driveway and the garage door was knocked off the tracks on Feb. 11.

The estimated damage was more than $50,000, court files show.

A neighbor and his wife heard the incident, and saw Karnas drive away from the victim's driveway. Channahon police detained Karnas, who was driving his white GMC truck, at the USA Liquors store on Reed Street, "where he ... said he believes (a man) f***** around with his wife," court documents reflect.

Last week, Channahon Police Chief Adam Bogart notified Joliet Patch that his agency did not have a booking mugshot of Karnas because, "our involvement in Will County's case was limited to locating Mr. Karnas at USA Liquors ... where Mr. Karnas was peacefully taken into custody, in the parking lot, by Channahon officers.

"Custody of Mr. Karnas was then transferred to the WCSO within minutes of the arrest. USA Liquors is approximately 2 miles from the location of events leading up to Mr. Karnas' arrest," Bogart explained.

In January, Karnas' divorce lawyer, Ray McSteen of Joliet also obtained an order of protection against his client, after Karnas notified McSteen's assistant, "Ray knows I'm crazy and what I'm capable of. I'm gonna go find him at the courthouse, the office or his home. I have a chainsaw. I lost the best thing that ever happened to me in the last three years, and he is going to have to pay," Senko informed Judge DeWilkins in preparation for Friday's hearing.

Related Joliet Patch coverage of Matt Karnas:

'He Continued To Crush Me Until The Neighbors Ran Out': Victim