Man accused of identity theft in purchase of $15,700 lawn mower in DeKalb County

A 48-year-old Chicago man is accused of using another’s identity and a fraudulent check to purchase a lawn mower worth $15,700 at a DeKalb County store, court records show.

Justin M. Lesniewski was charged Aug. 9 with identity theft, theft and forgery in DeKalb County court.

The most serious offense, identity theft, is a Class 1 felony, which can carry a prison sentence of four to 15 years if convicted.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office responded to DeKalb Implement, located on Route 64 outside Sycamore, for a report of suspicious activity, according to a synopsis filed in DeKalb County court.

There, deputies were told that a man had bought a lawn mower for $15,700, providing a driver’s license and paying with a check before loading the mower onto a U-Haul truck and leaving the property.

Deputies were able to confirm that the driver’s license was fraudulent with the name of a real person but the photo of a different person, the man who bought the lawn mower, according to the synopsis.

U-Haul reported to deputies that it rented the truck to a man with an Indiana driver’s license. That license had the same photo but a different name.

The truck was never returned and had been reported stolen by Markham police, according to the synopsis.

The Pontiac Police Department also reported that it had a similar case in which the same driver’s license was used to buy equipment. Pontiac had submitted the photo to the Secretary of State’s Office for facial recognition and was given a possible match of Lesniewski, according to the synopsis.

A photo lineup was conducted at a Sycamore business, and Lesniewski was picked as the person who purchased the lawn mower, court records show.

Lesniewski was arrested Aug. 8 by Grayslake police while trying to buy equipment with a fraudulent driver’s license and check, according to the synopsis.

An attempt to reach the Grayslake Police Department on Friday was not successful.

Lesniewski did not have an attorney listed in court records as of Friday.