Lake Station Man Arrested After High-Speed Multi-State Pursuit In Stolen SUV
A Lake Station man, identified as Gilberto Munoz, was taken into custody after authorities say he led police on a high-speed pursuit that began in northwest Indiana and continued into Illinois on November 15, 2025.
According to the affidavit, a Lake County Sheriff’s officer was on patrol shortly after 7:26 p.m. when the Lake County dispatcher advised that Indiana State Police troopers were in a pursuit of a fleeing vehicle westbound on Interstate 80/94 at the 15-mile marker. The officer joined the pursuit near Cline Avenue and observed a maroon Chevrolet Equinox traveling at speeds exceeding 100 mph while using all travel lanes as it fled toward Illinois.
Authorities reported the driver’s actions endangered pursuing officers and other motorists. The pursuit continued through Hammond, passing Kennedy Avenue, Indianapolis Boulevard, and Calumet Avenue before crossing into Illinois. ISP troopers terminated their involvement upon entering Illinois, but Lake County officers continued northbound on I-94 as the driver used both shoulders of the roadway and swerved in and out of traffic. A Chicago Police Department helicopter also joined the pursuit.
The vehicle later traveled onto Interstate 57 and exited toward Halsted Street. After briefly losing visual contact, Lake County officers were updated by Chicago Police helicopter personnel who maintained surveillance and followed the vehicle south onto a residential street in the 10000 block of South Emerald Avenue, where it stopped. They reported no one exited the vehicle.
Officers located the Chevrolet Equinox parked at the location with a single occupant. Munoz was ordered out, detained, searched, and secured in a patrol vehicle. Dispatch then confirmed that Munoz had two extraditable warrants, including a Lake County failure-to-appear warrant related to pending criminal confinement and domestic battery charges, and a federal probation-violation warrant out of the U.S. District Court in Hammond.
Munoz was transported to the Cook County Sheriff’s Department holding facility pending extradition.
Charges filed November 17,2025
• Resisting Law Enforcement – Operates a Vehicle (Level 6 Felony)
• Resisting Law Enforcement – Uses a Vehicle (Level 6 Felony)
• Reckless Driving – Unreasonable Speed Endangering Safety (Class C Misdemeanor)
