An 18-year-old driver was hit with attempted-murder charges for allegedly plowing into five Chicago cops during a chaotic “teen takeover” event on Memorial Day weekend.
Rashad Johnson was cuffed Sunday around 3:23 a.m. and slapped with five counts of attempted murder and a raft of other offenses for striking a group of officers trying to control the hundreds of teens who flooded South Loomis Street along Chicago’s West Side, police said.
The teen driver ended up finally jumping the curb and crashing into a police squad car, pole and fence, authorities said.
The Plainfield resident, who wasn’t injured in the wreck, was quickly taken into custody, with cops also finding a gun inside his car, local ABC 7 reported.
All five struck officers were transported to local hospitals and are in good condition, Chicago police officials said.
The violent incident erupted during a so-called “teen takeover,” a viral trend plaguing American streets, shutting down the Windy City road as police scrambled to control the rowdy crowd.
The dangerous social-media stunt escalated across the nation over the holiday weekend – with the mayhem triggering police responses to the fights, robberies and gunfire that erupted as the massive crowds of minors terrorized public spaces.
Chicago police reported another violent incident around the same time and 30 minutes away from the teen takeover in which a 19-year-old was shot.
They did not say if the shooting was related to the large gathering where the five officers were hit.
In addition to attempted murder, Johnson was also charged with five counts of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, two counts of aggravated unlawful possession of a deadly weapon, and criminal damage to government property.
