An Illinois man allegedly pretended to threaten with a gun and made derogatory remarks before being arrested by police at Lake Opeka park in Des Plaines.
According to police reports, the incident occurred when one woman was attempting to enter the park. The man confronted her, tried to get between her and the park, but she walked around him and joined a group of women wearing hijabs and long sleeves. He insulted them, demanded they leave the United States, and told one woman to remove her face covering.
Police stated he reached for his waistband to appear as though he had a weapon and threatened to shoot the women. He told them they looked like Muslim “monkeys” and “ninjas” and that they needed to leave the country.
The man, identified as 44-year-old Matthew R. Kindle, was arrested after police witnessed him yelling at another person. He also made comments referring to “white power” during detention.
Kindle previously faced a domestic battery charge in 2019. He claimed to police he was a white Christian and half German and half Italian, but stated that “a group of women approached him and made a derogatory comment toward him.”
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office charged Kindle with three felony counts of disorderly conduct/hate crime, three felony counts of aggravated assault/hate crime, and misdemeanor charges including aggravated assault, disorderly conduct, and resisting a peace officer.
CAIR-Chicago executive director Ahmed Rehab praised the hate crime charges, stating: “No one should ever have to fear for their safety, let alone face threats of gun violence and white supremacist bigotry, while simply walking or spending time in a public community park.”
State Rep. Justin Cochran called the incident “sickening” and told neighbors: “You belong here. That is your park, this is your city, your district as much as it is anyone’s.”
