December 14, 2006, 5:03 PM CST
Gurnee police executed a search warrant Thursday at the home of Chicago Bears defensive tackle Terry "Tank" Johnson in what sources described as an apparent drug raid.
Johnson, a third-year Bear who has had two previous run-ins with the law since joining the NFL team, apparently was not home when Gurnee police executed a search warrant shortly before 11 a.m. in the 400 block of Delany Road in the far north suburb.
Sources familiar with the case said police apparently were seeking drugs.
Charges could be filed later this afternoon as a result of the search, sources said.
Bears Coach Lovie Smith said this afternoon that Johnson was with the team the entire day.
"I know that a search warrant was executed, put into play, on his home today ... I found out about it a little while before practice," the coach said. "He is cooperating right now."
"We're disappointed in the situation that's come up right now," he continued. "It's a distraction for the team and all of that, but I'll get more details and go from there."
Johnson declined to talk with reporters in the Bears locker room midday today and was not seen at practice.
The Bears already are without one starting defensive tackle because of the ruptured hamstring injury suffered by Tommie Harris that sent him to injured reserve for the remainder of the season.
In a news release, Gurnee police said "some items sought in the warrant were discovered inside the home," but police refused to disclose the nature of the items recovered.
Police did say two adults â€" a 26-year-old male and a 25-year-old female â€" were in the Delany Road home along with a toddler and an infant.
Officers with the Northern Illinois Police Alarm System assisted Gurnee police in the six-minute search.
Neighbors reported that police escorted a man from the house in handcuffs following the raid. Police did not identify the man, but neighbors said they believed he lived at the residence with Johnson and Johnson's girlfriend and children.
Witnesses said at least 20 police officers participated in the raid.
Neighbors also said complaints had been made to Gurnee police in the past about as many as six pit bulls that were seen caged in the back yard of Johnson's home.
In addition, neighbors said complaints had been filed alleging that someone fired a gun in the back yard of the home.
Last March, prosecutors dropped battery and resisting arrest charges filed against Johnson in February when a police officer who scuffled with Johnson outside a Rush Street nightclub refused to proceed with the case, authorities said.
The February arrest also led to violation of probation charges to be filed against Johnson, who had been placed on 18 months' probation in November 2005 after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor unlawful gun possession charge.
The violation charges also were dismissed when the battery case was dropped, prosecutors said.
Johnson, a third-year defensive tackle out of the University of Washington who celebrated his 25th birthday on Dec. 7, has 20 tackles and 3.5 sacks this season.
Gurnee police executed a search warrant Thursday at the home of Chicago Bears defensive tackle Terry "Tank" Johnson in what sources described as an apparent drug raid.
Johnson, a third-year Bear who has had two previous run-ins with the law since joining the NFL team, apparently was not home when Gurnee police executed a search warrant shortly before 11 a.m. in the 400 block of Delany Road in the far north suburb.
Sources familiar with the case said police apparently were seeking drugs.
Charges could be filed later this afternoon as a result of the search, sources said.
Bears Coach Lovie Smith said this afternoon that Johnson was with the team the entire day.
"I know that a search warrant was executed, put into play, on his home today ... I found out about it a little while before practice," the coach said. "He is cooperating right now."
"We're disappointed in the situation that's come up right now," he continued. "It's a distraction for the team and all of that, but I'll get more details and go from there."
Johnson declined to talk with reporters in the Bears locker room midday today and was not seen at practice.
The Bears already are without one starting defensive tackle because of the ruptured hamstring injury suffered by Tommie Harris that sent him to injured reserve for the remainder of the season.
In a news release, Gurnee police said "some items sought in the warrant were discovered inside the home," but police refused to disclose the nature of the items recovered.
Police did say two adults â€" a 26-year-old male and a 25-year-old female â€" were in the Delany Road home along with a toddler and an infant.
Officers with the Northern Illinois Police Alarm System assisted Gurnee police in the six-minute search.
Neighbors reported that police escorted a man from the house in handcuffs following the raid. Police did not identify the man, but neighbors said they believed he lived at the residence with Johnson and Johnson's girlfriend and children.
Witnesses said at least 20 police officers participated in the raid.
Neighbors also said complaints had been made to Gurnee police in the past about as many as six pit bulls that were seen caged in the back yard of Johnson's home.
In addition, neighbors said complaints had been filed alleging that someone fired a gun in the back yard of the home.
Last March, prosecutors dropped battery and resisting arrest charges filed against Johnson in February when a police officer who scuffled with Johnson outside a Rush Street nightclub refused to proceed with the case, authorities said.
The February arrest also led to violation of probation charges to be filed against Johnson, who had been placed on 18 months' probation in November 2005 after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor unlawful gun possession charge.
The violation charges also were dismissed when the battery case was dropped, prosecutors said.
Johnson, a third-year defensive tackle out of the University of Washington who celebrated his 25th birthday on Dec. 7, has 20 tackles and 3.5 sacks this season.
