Man gets 10 years for attempting to steal copper during burglary

in

November 8

JOLIET – Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow announced that a Joliet man on Tuesday was sentenced to 10 years in prison for burglarizing an abandoned Cub Foods store and attempting to steal copper piping from the building in March of this year.

Derrick Bullock, 49, was convicted of burglary by Circuit Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak at the conclusion of a bench trial in August. Judge Bertani-Tomczak sentenced Bullock on Tuesday.

Bullock and two other men entered the empty building at 191 S. Larkin Ave. in Joliet on March 16.  Officers from the Joliet Police Department’s Burglary Task Force were on patrol.

Led by Senior Officer Michael Reilly, task force members entered the building in pitch black darkness facing unknown threats. Bullock and the other defendants attempted to flee when they heard police, leaving freshly cut copper near an exit. The three were arrested on site. Testimony at Bullock’s trial revealed one defendant had a copper-cutting device in his possession.

“Derrick Bullock has an extensive criminal history with seven prior felonies including armed robbery and residential burglary,” said State’s Attorney Glasgow. “He is a threat to society who has earned every moment he will spend in prison.”

The State’s Attorney credited prosecutors Frank Byers and Marie Griffin with securing a conviction and sentence that takes Bullock off the streets. The State’s Attorney also credited the Joliet Police Department’s Burglary Task Force for its first-rate police work.

Charges are still pending against two other defendants.