(New York Daily News) An Illinois man accused of vandalizing a bakery in suburban Chicago ahead of a drag-friendly show over the weekend made his first appearance in court Tuesday.
Joseph Collins, 24, is charged with vandalism and writing hateful messages on the walls of UpRising Bakery and Café in Village of Lake in the Hills, a small community located about 45 miles northwest of Chicago.
On Saturday, UpRising Bakery and Café owner Corinna Sac was forced to reschedule a “Brunch at Night” event after the bakery “sustained significant damage” as the result of anti-LGBTQ vandalism, authorities said in a news release.
(Danielle Wallace, Fox News) An Illinois man is charged with a hate crime for allegedly vandalizing a bakery about an hour outside of Chicago, and a drag show planned at the damaged business has been canceled.
The local police department, meanwhile, has been fielding complaints for weeks about advertisements saying children were welcome at the drag performance, but investigators insisted that no nudity or sexually explicit content was expected during the show. Protests and counter-protests were planned.
Joseph I. Collins, 24, of Alsip, Illinois, is charged with two felony counts of a hate crime and criminal damage to property in connection to an incident that happened just after midnight Saturday at the UpRising Bakery and Café located in the 2100 block of W. Algonquin Road in Lake in the Hills, Illinois.
At approximately 12:04 a.m., Lake in the Hills officers were dispatched to the bakery and notified of an “in progress damage to property and the suspect had fled on foot,” according to a news release.
“An Algonquin police sergeant had seen the suspect leave the scene and was instrumental in this incident,” Lake in the Hills Police Department said. About a minute later, Lake in the Hills officers, along with the Algonquin police sergeant, took the suspect into custody and identified him as Collins.
The UpRising Bakery and Café “sustained significant damage early this morning,” Lake in the Hills police said. “Officers found broken windows along with hateful messages spray-painted on the building. Due to this act, the event planned for this evening, has been canceled per the wishes of the bakery owner.”
Photos shared on social media showed smashed windows and spray-painted messages, including “Groomers,” “F–s rape kids,” and “Christ is king.”
