Cops: Man Sprays Guests with Fire Extinguisher at Hilton

An Arkansas man was charged with battery and other offenses after he sprayed the Oak Lawn Hilton and hotel guests with a fire extinguisher, reports said.

Police said the man was already detained and in custody by hotel security when they responded to a possible fire around 11:50 p.m. Feb. 12 at the Hilton, 9333 S. Cicero Ave. Several other village police officers and firefighters were on the scene evacuating guests from the third floor because of “white smoke.”

Milton M. Brown, 23, of Springdale, Ark., was charged with three counts of battery, one count of criminal damage to property, one count of criminal damage to firefighting equipment and one count of reckless conduct.

According to reports, witnesses identified Brown as the man they saw breaking the safety glass on a fire extinguisher in the second-floor stairwell.

A guest at the hotel told police he heard glass breaking, then opened his door to see what was happening. The guest said he saw white smoke and Brown holding the fire extinguisher. Brown pushed the guest back toward his room before running down the hall, according to the report.

Four men staying on the third floor told police that they heard noise outside their room and walked into a cloud of white-colored smoke in the hallway. Police said Brown went up to the men and sprayed the extinguisher in their faces.

The men chased Brown downstairs into the main lobby when he jumped over a desk. The hotel employee had gone to check on the status of the fire. When he returned, he saw Brown hiding behind the desk and reaching into the cash drawer, police said.

The employee demanded to know what Brown was doing. Brown stood up and punched the employee in the chin, the employee told police.

A security guard helped detain Brown until police arrived. A hotel bartender also confirmed that he saw Brown being chased into the lobby by a group of guests, police said.

Police toured the second-floor stairway and noted broken glass and one of two fire extinguishers missing. A fire extinguisher was found on the floor in the hallway.

At the police station, police said Brown started complaining of feeling hot and that he had taken ecstasy and was drinking earlier in the evening. He was taken to Advocate Christ Memorial Hospital where he was examined and released.

Brown told police he had ingested “shrooms” and a “whole bunch of things.” Police said Brown admitted taking the fire extinguisher and spraying other guests because the “demons and frauds” were after him.

While attempting to put Brown back into the holding cell, police said he reached through the cell door and grabbed a cop’s car keys from the cop’s vest pocket and refused to give them back.

The watch commander told Brown that he would be Tasered if he didn’t turn over the keys, police said.  Brown gave back the keys.

The next morning, a Cook County assistant state’s attorney arrived and interviewed Brown. The Arkansas man told the prosecutor he had no recollection of the events from the night before and wasn’t sure why he was in custody. He said he thought he had taken ecstasy but thought it could have been something else, police said.

Brown began asking the whereabouts of his wife and truck, but was advised by police that they knew nothing about them.

The Cook County State’s Attorney did not recommend felony charges. Brown’s next scheduled court date is March 14 at the Bridgeview courthouse.