DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) – A man broke into an ex-girlfriend's apartment before forcing her into a car and driving away, police said.
Officers said Teron Lamar Perry, 36, came to the victim’s Wood Street residence in Decatur at about 8:50 a.m. on Aug. 30 and broke a security window of the apartment building. He’s accused of then kicking open her locked apartment door before grabbing her by the hair, punching her in the face and back repeatedly and biting her on the arm.
Perry then dragged the victim by her hair and shirt to her car in a way that caused her shirt to tear off, then forced her into the car she uses and began driving, police said. According to sworn statements, when she told him to stop and let her out, he said “you can get out whenever you want but you’ll be jumping from a moving vehicle because (I’m not) stopping”.
Perry drove the car to Springfield, police said, and stopped at a Save-A-Lot. When the victim tried to get away, police said he caught up to her and dragged her back to the car by the hair. She later managed to get control of the car when he stopped and left the car in Springfield, according to statements, but he managed to get back into the front passenger seat before she could leave.
Statements said the victim drove back to Decatur with Perry in the car and drove by a home of family members, who were aware of what was happening and recognized the vehicle. They caught up to the car and boxed it in before confronting Perry, police said, and a fist fight broke out between them and the suspect.
Police said Perry had a gun in the car but never showed it or threatened anyone with it.
Perry was considered armed and dangerous when authorities began searching for him in late August. Authorities had located the victim, but spent weeks searching for the suspect.
The car Perry is accused of stealing is registered to a family member of the victim, officers said, who filled out a stolen car verification form.
In the aftermath, police said the victim had two baseball-sized bruises on the middle-right part of her back and a “raise semicircular red swollen area” on the back of her upper right arm.
Police arrested Perry on Sept. 25 at 11 a.m. in Decatur. He’s facing nine charges, including counts of home invasion, armed violence and unlawful restraint, in Macon County. His bail is set at $100,000.
