By Jason Meisner and Rosemary Sobol, Chicago Tribune –
CHICAGO — A Chicago man on probation for a weapons conviction sent threatening photos of himself armed with a shotgun to a chef at a popular Oak Park, Ill., restaurant where he had recently been fired, authorities said Monday.
Chicago police released a photo that allegedly shows the suspect, identified as Nicholas Claxton, holding up a cellphone and taking his own picture in a mirror. The man in the photo is clad in a camouflaged, bulletproof vest and black ski mask that covers most of his face. He has night-vision goggles perched on his head and is clutching a shotgun in his left hand.
Prosecutors said Claxton, 23, texted the photo to a chef at the Maya del Sol restaurant on July 28, five days after he was fired as a line cook. Claxton was also “upset that his former employer had accessed his credit report three times,” Assistant State’s Attorney Lorraine Scaduto said.
He also sent photos depicting a stash of ammunition, police said.
The restaurant immediately reported the photos to Oak Park police.
“I felt I had to act on it,” the restaurant’s owner, Anan Abu-Taleb, said by telephone Monday. “For me, the safety of my family, my staff and my customers is the top priority.”
He would not discuss details of Claxton’s employment at the restaurant or why he was fired, citing the ongoing police investigation.
In a statement issued Monday, Oak Park police said they interpreted the alleged communication from Claxton as “a potentially escalating incident” and notified authorities in Chicago.
Claxton was arrested Saturday near his home in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago. A search of his apartment uncovered a loaded, sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun with a sling to make it concealable, a military-grade ballistic vest with steel plates, a set of night-vision goggles and a 12-gauge signal gun, police said.
Claxton was charged with unlawful use of a weapon by a felon and cyber-stalking. Cook County Judge Donald Panarese Jr. set bond at $250,000.
Court records show Claxton pleaded guilty in May to a felony charge of possession of an assault rifle and was given 18 months’ probation.
