A 24-year-old from Calumet Park was arrested Friday night for having a firearm inside his car while it was parked in the Naperville Topgolf parking lot, the 24th time a suspect’s been charged with a firearm-related offense since August 2023, officials said.
Demonte G. Dennis was arrested about 9:15 p.m. at the 3211 Odyssey Court lot on one charge of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a class 4 felony, and a misdemeanor charge for possession of cannabis.
Dennis was taken into custody after police discovered a firearm illicitly stored inside his car while patrolling the Topgolf lot, according to Naperville police Cmdr. Rick Krakow.
Officers were performing a proactive foot patrol of the lot when they detected an odor of cannabis from the area around a parked Buick, Krakow said. The vehicle was unoccupied, but when officers looked through its windows, they observed a handgun in plain view.
Dennis, the Buick’s registered owner, was detained when we later returned to his car, Krakow said. Court records show that Dennis possessed a valid Firearm Owner’s Identification card but did not have a Concealed Carry License.
His next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 25, according to DuPage County court records.
Dennis’ arrest comes a little more than two weeks after Courtney Bennett, 36 of Dolton, was arrested Aug. 18 for allegedly driving into the Naperville Topgolf lot with open alcohol, cannabis and a loaded gun.
August saw two other suspects brought into custody on firearm-related charges outside the Odyssey Court business. Edward Lamont Coffey Jr., 29 of Chicago, was arrested Aug. 9 on several felony charges, including aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. A week earlier, Ivann Mitchell Altman-McCray, 31, of Chicago, was arrested Aug. 2 at the facility’s lot on three misdemeanor firearm-related charges.
Consistently making headlines for more than a year now, the trend of people bringing guns into Naperville’s Topgolf parking lot was first observed in August 2023. Since then, Naperville police have been routinely doing foot patrols around the business and making arrests for illegal gun possession, among other offenses.