Man Who Took Aim At Naperville Police Had Pellet Gun: Authorities

NAPERVILLE, IL -- A 27-year-old Naperville man who was injured in a police-involved shooting after aiming what appeared to be a gun at officers, has been charged with three counts of aggravated assault to a police officer. After an investigation, it was revealed that Zachary Kelley, of the 1200 block of Whispering Hills Court, was armed with a pellet gun at the time of the Jan. 23 incident.

Police say they found Kelley in a nearby parking lot while they were investigating a call reporting that a a man had harassed a woman at a Mobil gas station at 1280 West Ogden Avenue. When they got to the parking lot outside of Los Tapatios restaurant, Kelley was holding what appeared to be a gun to his head, according to police.

A dashcam video released by Naperville police includes audio of officers apparently pleading with Kelley to drop the firearm. Authorities say Kelley then advanced at officers with the gun pointed in their direction, "at which time an officer fired his service weapon, striking Kelley."

Kelley was taken to a nearby hospital in serious, but stable condition. Kelley had been in hospital care until he was released on Feb. 1 and taken to the DuPage County Jail, where he is currently being held on $100,000 bond.

DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said of the incident, "Thanks to the professionalism displayed by the Naperville Police Department in this case, no officers or innocent bystanders were injured."

Naperville Police Chief Robert Marshall said he was "extremely proud" of how officers responded to the incident. He added, "One of the hardest parts of a police officer’s job is the uncertainty; not knowing what they will face on any given shift. For this reason, we put a tremendous amount of effort into training so that our officers are able to act quickly and appropriately in rapidly-evolving situations. "

Kelley is scheduled to appear in court again on Feb. 25. The DuPage County Major Crimes Task Force is handling the ongoing investigation into the police-involved shooting.

Image via DuPage County State's Attorney's Office