(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – An accused murderer on electronic home monitoring was busted earlier this month for possessing illegal drugs and guns, including an assault rifle and an automatic weapon, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office said.
Sheriff’s investigators did a compliance check on Bertell Johnson Jan. 19 after learning he had posted photos on social media of himself carrying a semi-automatic rifle and a handgun modified with a “switch” rendering the firearm fully automatic, officials said in a news release.
Johnson, 30, had been placed on electronic monitoring in 2021 while awaiting trial on charges that include first-degree murder, the sheriff’s office said. Johnson is a felon previously convicted on gun and drug offenses, officials said.
During their search this month, investigators reportedly found an assault rifle; three handguns, including one with an auto-“switch,” and various gun accessories. In addition, they recovered 16 grams of suspected cocaine, approximately 300 grams of suspected cannabis, 78 suspected oxycodone pills and $4,000 in cash, officials said.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said the seizure “perfectly illustrates why I have for years argued that individuals charged with violent crimes should not be placed on electronic monitoring.”
A judge on Jan. 20 ordered Johnson held on additional felony charges, including unlawful use of a weapon by a felon; unlawful use of an automatic weapon and possession of a controlled substance.
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