Allison Muth knew Friday was not going to be a typical workday when she left her Countryside house and ran into her landlord who lives next door.

“You’re not going anywhere,” he said.

It was then Muth noticed scores of heavily-armed police officers from as many as 30 communities swarming around a home two doors down.

A man identified by a neighbor as Ken Clark, of 10155 Fifth Ave. Cut Off, had barricaded himself in his home after firing off multiple shots with a gun.

Muth was hustled off, along with Clark’s mother, to a mobile command center were she was reached by telephone.

“I was with his mother all day and his brother is here now,” Muth said Friday night. “She’s doing the best she can.”

At that time, police were using a loudspeaker to negotiate Clark’s surrender, she said. After a standoff that lasted well into the evening, Clark was forced from the home and captured.
Countryside police chief Timothy Swanson said Clark had not been charged as of Tuesday pending a psychological evaluation.

“I think he has some medical history there that has to be addressed,” Swanson said.
He added police have had some contact with Clark previously. Police still are investigating whether Clark actually fired a gun at anyone in particular.

A gun was recovered during a search of Clark’s home, Swanson said.
Just before 10 p.m., a team of law enforcement officers went in through the back door of Clark’s home with pepper spray and flash bang grenades.

“That pepper spray is pretty aggressive,” said Countryside Mayor Robert Conrad, who was at the crime scene. “So it forced the individual out the front door where a team was waiting to apprehend him.”

Conrad said he saw Clark sitting upright as an ambulance passed him at the scene and he appeared to be unharmed. Conrad expressed concerns over a Countryside police officer who injured an ankle during the operation. However, overall he was pleased with the outcome.
“It was a safe end for all and a great effort by all.”

Muth’s boyfriend, George Munoz, who lives with her at 10125 Fifth Ave. Cut Off, had found a way around road blocks and was just about home when he was apprehended by police and told to go back the way he came for his own safety. Munoz was waiting it out at a neighborhood tavern with other neighbors near the site of the standoff.

“There’s cops everywhere,” he said Friday night. “I can’t even go home but I understand what they are trying to do. You got to be safe.”

Munoz, who has lived at his current address for about four months, said the rural neighborhood is usually quiet, although he had some experience with the house two doors down.

“I see the guy (Clark) all the time,” he said.  “He’s just a loner. I see him out there shooting, usually a BB gun to shoot some squirrels. But sometimes he uses a real gun. I’ve heard him a couple of times at like one o’clock in the morning.”

Earlier in the evening, residents who had been displaced because of the standoff were offered a night’s stay in a hotel free of charge.

Second Ward Alderman John Von Drasek said the city partnered with the Best Western at 6251 Joliet Road to provide free housing for residents who could not get to their homes because of a police barricade of Fifth Avenue Cut Off.

Police began negotiations Friday afternoon after the suspect holed up inside his house after reports of gunshots.

Judy Robb, who lives next door, said Clark and his mother resided at the home. The street was barricaded after a disturbance started earlier that afternoon, she said.

“He took a chain and threw it over high wire cables,” she said. “The cables grounded, and it blew up. What saved us is the chain melted and everything was OK. My husband saw him walk away, but did not see him actually do it.”

ComEd and the police were then notified of the situation, she said.

Pam Anton, a spokeswoman for ComEd, said they received a report at 1:02 p.m. Friday from 10100 block of the Fifth Avenue Cut Off of a streetlight wire down, but it was repaired by 2:28 p.m. She said the power company received no reports of power outages in that area, nor throughout Countryside.

Both Robb and Mackie Storc, who lives nearby, said the suspect fired about seven shots.

The Cook County Sheriff’s Department assisted with a negotiation team. A SWAT team and armored car also were requested, and helicopters were seen circling the area. Dozens of departments from throughout the greater Chicago area responded, including McHenry and Skokie. About 200 police officers were on site during the standoff.

Staff writer Kristen Zambo contributed to this report.