Man charged in Lisle license plate reader thefts speaks out
The short version: CBS Chicago covers a Lisle man publicly defending himself after he and two friends were charged with stealing and trashing five Flock ALPR cameras.
Our Take
Credit to CBS Chicago for getting Anthony Pareigis on camera after he, Jacob Steichmann, and Thomas Yano were charged for tearing down and taking five Flock units in Lisle. Whatever you think of the method, the underlying sentiment isn't rare: a lot of people are furious that a private company bolted always-on tracking hardware onto public roads without ever asking the neighborhood for permission.
But vandalism and theft are still crimes, and criminal charges are an easy way for police departments and Flock's PR team to change the subject from 'why is this camera here' to 'look at these vandals.' It hands local officials a clean narrative and buries the actual policy questions: who approved this contract, what's the retention period, who gets access to the data, and was there ever a public vote. Three guys now facing charges doesn't slow Flock's expansion one bit — it just gives cover to keep installing more.
If you want your objection to actually count, go to your village board meeting, pull the contract, and demand answers on cost, oversight, and data-sharing before the next budget cycle locks it in. Check our map to see what's already watching your commute, and use our take-action guide for the legal playbook that actually gets ordinances rewritten instead of headlines written.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of CBS Chicago, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.