It appears that motorcycle rider Zachary Konecki, who was charged with groping a female cyclist on Milwaukee Avenue two years ago in Noble Square, and then punching out her husband with a reenforced glove, just can't stay out of trouble on his motorbike. According to the Chicago Police Department, Konecki was arrested during this spring's Black Lives Matter protests for a similar attack from his motorcycle a couple miles up the road on Milwaukee in Avondale.
Konecki crossed my mind yesterday because he allegedly committed the 2018 assaults from a Honda Grom mini-motorcycle and was known to participate in large group rides, and yesterday a Streetsblog reader notified me of a big gathering of motorcyclists illegally hanging out on the Lakefront Trail. "You know those groups of young people who swarm with their crotch rocket motorbikes? They were all over Cricket Hill [at Wilson Avenue] and the bike path. Cops were there with lights flashing. Looked like they were telling them to leave." Police News Affairs told me today that no report was filed for the incident.
Konecki's 2018 alleged assault case took place on September 22, when a couple was biking northwest on Milwaukee Avenue near Augusta Boulevard. Konecki, then 30, and a companion allegedly rode up to the cyclists on mini-cycles, and Koenecki groped the woman. Her husband chased the bikers down and confronted them, and when he turned to talk to the second motorcyclist, Konecki allegedly punched him in the face while wearing gloves with reinforced knuckles. The husband was knocked unconscious with a concussion, and the motorcyclists fled the scene.
At the time, working with tips provided by a resident, I conducted research on the case and shared my findings with the CPD. Konecki was arrested for that attack in November 2018 and charged with two felony counts of aggravated battery. While he had no prior convictions in Cook County, the Daily Herald reported that in 2008 he was arrested in his home in northwest-suburban Island Lake and charged with possession of 326 grams of marijuana with intent to deliver, possession of drug paraphernalia, unlawful use of brass knuckles, and filing a false police report.
The 2018 court case has been dragging on slowly, a situation that surely hasn't been helped by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a source, the next court case is set for December 20, and it looks like the case will finally be scheduled to go to trial in January or February.
When I tweeted about the Cricket Hill incident, a reader alerted me to an August 2020 Chicago City Wire article about 14 arrests made this spring during the George Floyd protests on North Milwaukee Avenue, which listed Konecki as one of the arrestees.
Police News Affairs told me today that Konecki was arrested on May 31, 2020, at about 2:45 p.m. on the 3200 block of North Milwaukee, near Belmont Avenue, and charged with misdemeanor battery causing bodily harm. "Konecki was positively identified after driving erratically in and out of traffic on a motorbike as the offender who used a closed fist and punched the victim in the face while Konecki was on a motorbike," News Affairs said. Chicago police records show that bond was set at $1,500.
It's noteworthy that Konecki was arrested once again on Milwaukee, not far from the scene of the 2018 crime, especially because he was out on bond for the assault on the cyclists at the time. At any rate, hopefully those bicycle riders will finally get some justice this winter.
