19-Year-Old Accused of Lying About Man With Shotgun in Fake 911 Call

BURBANK, IL -- A Chicago man phoned in a fake 911 call after he noticed he was under police surveillance in the Kohl’s parking lot in Burbank, prosecutors said Wednesday in court.

Jim Ferguson, 19, appeared before Cook County Judge Peter Felice on a felony charge of making a false 911 call. Ferguson was also charged with a misdemeanor for borrowing someone’s vehicle without their permission.

According to the charges, Burbank police were watching a woman around 4:18 p.m. Nov. 8, after she ran from a Ford Explorer into the Kohl’s, 7608 S. LaCross Ave. Officers drove around the parking lot where they made eye contact with a man later identified as Ferguson, sitting inside the vehicle

Burbank police said that Ferguson drove off at a high rate of speed, blowing stop signs and driving the wrong way down a one-way street. While police were pursuing the driver, a 911 call came in from a caller named “Jason,” who reported that there was a man in the area armed with a shotgun.

The prosecutor said that officers later saw Ferguson and the woman they had been watching together at another location. Police called the cell phone number of the person who had made the 911 call. Officers said the phone rang in Ferguson’s presence. .

Ferguson allegedly admitted to placing the call because he thought the woman was in danger. While speaking to Ferguson, officers learned the Ford Explorer had been reported stolen.

The assistant public defender told the judge that Ferguson’s criminal background consisted of misdemeanors and that he had an opportunity to work for UPS.

“This is his first felony,” she said.

The judge set bail at $30,000. Ferguson’s next court hearing is Nov. 22 in Bridgeview.