George Silva

The Lake County Sheriff’s Warrants Team and Patrol Division said it has seized three illegally held firearms.

On Nov. 18, the team executed an emergency firearms restraining order/search warrant at a residence in the 26300 block of North Diamond Lake Road in Lake County near Mundelein. Deputies said they seized a 12-gauge shotgun, SKS rifle and semiautomatic pistol from a residence belonging to a man who is a convicted felon with a revoked Firearm Owner Identification card.

On Nov. 17, sheriff’s deputies responded to the area regarding individuals who wanted to report their neighbor’s behavior had become increasingly concerning.

The witnesses reported their neighbor, George Silva, 48, on several recent occasions walked around his yard during the evening, with a flashlight, yelling at intruders. According to the neighbors, there were no intruders and Silva was yelling at nobody. During one of the occasions, Silva, armed with semiautomatic firearm, solicited assistance from a neighbor to search for the “intruder.”

The neighbors became very concerned, saying Silva was acting irrationally and in possession of a firearm.

Following the search warrant, Silva was arrested. The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office approved three counts of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon (class 3 felonies).

“Our Patrol Division quickly recognized this individual posed a substantial risk to the community,” Sheriff John Idleburg said. “Given the circumstances, deputies moved swiftly to petition the court for an emergency firearms restraining order and search warrant, and when executed resulted in three illegally possessed firearms being seized. This is a textbook case of the importance of the new red flag laws in Illinois.”

Silva appeared in court Nov. 18 where a Lake County judge released him on a $50,000 recognizance bond. He is next due in court at 9 a.m. Dec. 18.

Class 3 felonies carry a prison sentence of two to five years as well as a fine of up to $25,000.