Sheriff: Deputy attacked during well-being check near Lake Zurich

A Lake County sheriff’s deputy is recovering after being punched in the face Sunday morning while conducting a well-being check near Lake Zurich , authorities said.

The sheriff’s office said it is seeking charges against a male suspect.

According to sheriff’s police, deputies were called at 8:55 a.m. to a residence in the 23800 block of North High Ridge Drive after someone reported that the home had no working utilities.

Deputies found the residents were fine but uncooperative and upset by their presence, according to the sheriff’s office.

One of the deputies walked to her patrol vehicle to retrieve information about services and resources available to the residents, then returned to the porch to leave the papers, the sheriff’s office said. That is when a 30-year-old man came out and threw a piece of wood at the deputy, authorities said.

As the deputy moved to avoid the wood, she fell backward into the snow. The man immediately jumped onto the deputy and began punching her in the face, sheriff’s police said.

Other deputies at the scene attempted to use a Taser to stop the attack and eventually were able to tackle the man and take him into custody. The man started spitting on the deputies as that occurred, according to sheriff’s police.

Both the deputy who was struck and the 30-year-old man were taken to an area hospital. The deputy was treated and released and the suspect was taken to another hospital for further evaluation.

“Police work can often be extremely unpredictable. In this instance, one of our deputy’s was trying to provide resources to a family, and she was violently attacked,” Sheriff John D. Idleburg said, “I am thankful our deputy will be okay and we will ensure the offender is held criminally accountable for his actions, upon his discharge from the hospital.”