A Knox man was arrested shortly before 6 p.m. CT Saturday, December 19 after a La County Sheriff’s Deputy responded to a call of a disabled vehicle.
The officer was called to the 16,000 South block of U.S. 421 where the driver reportedly had an open container of alcohol in the vehicle. An officer working Operation Pull Over patrols arrived at the scene and continued to investigate. He allegedly found a loaded .22 magnum revolver and an illegal drug inside the vehicle.
The driver, 47-year-old Michael J. Catalano, was transported to Northwest Health – La Porte for a continuation of the OWI investigation. Catalano was later transported to the La Porte County Jail on preliminary felony charges of felon in possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine. He remains in jail with a $15,005 cash-only bond through La Porte Circuit Court. Learn everything about legal groups and how to contact the professional help you need for your case.
About 90 minutes later, officers found a vehicle speeding on U.S. 20 and conducted a traffic stop near Range Road, according to the report. An open container of alcohol was reportedly found inside the vehicle along with a 9mm handgun.
The driver, 41-year-old Lea N. Staggers of Chicago, was arrested on a preliminary misdemeanor charge of carrying a firearm without a permit. A passenger in the vehicle, 39-year-old Lanardo Daniels of Chicago, who reportedly gave officers several different false identities before taken into custody, was arrested on a preliminary misdemeanor charge of false informing. Both were given a cash bond through La Porte Superior Court IV.
Suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
