Wilmington's Auto Thief Cuts Off Ankle Monitor Leaves It Inside Mailbox: Prosecutors

JOLIET, IL — After being involved in several years of stealing automobiles, Wilmington's Zachary Palmer now finds himself in real hot water with Will County's criminal justice system. Just a few weeks after being arrested and released from the Will County Jail following Palmer's latest stolen vehicle case, prosecutors have charged Palmer with escape/violating electronic monitoring, criminal damage to government property and resisting a peace officer.

Will County's weekend judge, Rolonda Mitchell, agreed that this time Palmer must be kept in the Will County Jail for an indefinite period of time under the SAFE-T-Act.

According to the prosecution's petition, Will County Sheriff's deputy Brock was sent to 23150 West Stripmine Road in Wilmington on May 7 after Will County Pretrial Services staff discovered that Palmer had removed his electronic ankle monitor for his 2025 possession of a stolen vehicle case. An alarm went out and the sheriff's deputies found the electronic ankle monitor in the mailbox of a residence and the band was cut. The order had been signed by a Will County judge on Dec. 10 and the order remained active.

By 1:20 p.m., sheriff's deputy Markarian found the vehicle associated with Palmer in the Louis Joliet Mall parking lot for Macy's. Two more deputies, Vuletic and Silverstein established a perimeter as they waited for Palmer to leave the mall.

When Palmer walked outside and approached his vehicle, he started running once he saw all the Will County Sheriff's patrol cars. A foot chase ensued and Palmer began throwing stolen merchandise he had just taken from Macy's and JCPenney out of his pants pockets as he ran, prosecutors outlined.

Eventually, one of the deputies removed their taser as a show of force and Palmer surrendered, going down to his knees. In the squad car, Palmer "became irate and banged his head against the windows and cage, causing a small cut on his forehead. An ambulance was called and defendant refused to allow them to bandage his wound," court documents state.

Prosecutors reminded Will County's judges that Palmer was already on pretrial release for two different aggravated stolen vehicle cases: one from 2025 and another from 2026. "He was placed on electronic monitoring and now destroyed that monitor," court documents indicate. "After he did so, he stole from two stores in the Louis Joliet Mall ... the defendant's actions by destroying the monitor have shown that he is not going to comply with court orders and that he is a significant flight risk. There is no less restrictive means at this point to ensure that he comes back to court than to keep him in custody.'

Judge Mitchell agreed. She noted that Palmer meets the dangerousness and willful flight standard of the Illinois SAFE-T-Act requiring his continued detention.

When Palmer isn't in jail, he resides in the 300 block of Van Buren Street in Wilmington.

In 2021, Palmer was the subject of a FOX 32 Chicago crime story revealing that Palmer was responsible for stealing three vehicles all in one day, in Kankakee County.