Man Gave False Story On Elmhurst Shooting: Police

ELMHURST, IL — A man with a vague story about being shot in Elmhurst ended up biting a detective who tried to get his phone, police said. The man was later accused of giving a false report.

The man, identified as 27-year-old David T. Gibson of Downers Grove, was arrested in late December, but the incident in question happened nearly a year ago. Elmhurst Patch obtained the police report through a public records request.

On Feb. 28, Elmhurst police were called to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove because of a man who reported being shot in Elmhurst, police said.

Gibson told police that he was paying a man $550 for an "object" from another man on "some little street" near Interstate 290 and North Avenue when the other man shot him in the leg, according to police.

The man told two officers that the man shot him with what appeared to be a .40-caliber gun, according to the report. He said he wouldn't give the police any more information because he refused to be a "snitch." When asked whether he would give consent for officers to search his car and phone, Gibson said he would not, police said.

Asked whether he was buying a gun when he was shot, Gibson admitted that was the case, saying he was not allowed to have guns because he was a felon, according to the report. But he said he needed one to protect himself.

One of the officers, a detective, informed Gibson that the police would seek warrants for the phone and car. Then the detective picked up Gibson's phone and said he was seizing it, according to the report.

Gibson grabbed the phone from the detective's hand, and the two officers tried to get it back. The detective asked hospital staff to contact security as they struggled to get the phone, police said. During the scuffle, Gibson bit the detective's forearm, police said. Security arrived and pulled Gibson off of the bed.

In a later interview, Gibson told officers he shot himself with a .40-caliber gun, which malfunctioned while he was cleaning it in his room at the Extended Stay America hotel in Downers Grove. He said he was in his wheelchair when it happened.

According to the report, physical evidence showed that the man had shot himself. Police also found three guns in Gibson's home, the report said.

Gibson was charged in late December with aggravated battery to a police officer, filing a false police report and three counts of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. He was taken to the DuPage County Jail.