Suspect in Illinois shooting of 3 deputies had multiple guns, sheriff says

DIXON, Ill. — A man accused of shooting and wounding three sheriff's deputies during a standoff at a northern Illinois home had several firearms in his possession, authorities said.

A fixed blade knife, pepper spray and ballistic armor were also found following Wednesday's shooting in the community of Lost Lake near Dixon, the Ogle County Sheriff's Office said in a statement .

The office released the man's identity, but The Associated Press is not naming him because he has not yet been charged. He was operated on at a local hospital. The nature of his injuries has not been revealed.

Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle said deputies were responding to a call from the homeowner that his “adult son was having suicidal and homicidal thoughts.” He said negotiators tried to reach the man by phone and decided to return shortly before noon.

“Immediately after entering the home, our deputies received gunfire coming from inside the home,” VanVickle said.

A member of the sheriff's special response team was shot in the face. Another suffered a gunshot wound to the upper arm, while the third was struck by a bullet in a bulletproof vest, VanVickle said in the release.

The suspect and weapons were found inside the front door.

A spokesperson for Katherine Shaw Bethea Hospital in Dixon said Wednesday that three people were taken to the hospital's emergency department, two of whom were treated and released. The spokesperson did not disclose the condition of the third person. One of the deputies underwent surgery after being transported by medical helicopter to a Rockford hospital, according to VanVickle.

Illinois State Police are investigating the shooting, VanVickle added.

The Lost Lake Landowners Association describes the area as a “country-style community” with about 700 homeowners in an unincorporated area near the towns of Dixon, Franklin Grove and Oregon, about 100 miles to the west of Chicago.