Alton, Wood River Police Charge Residents With Illegal Weapon Possession

ALTON/WOOD RIVER – Residents of Alton and Wood River have been charged with unlawful weapon possession in separate felony cases.

Brennen R. Sykes, 18, of Wood River, was charged Aug. 20, 2025 with one count each of aggravated unlawful possession of weapons (a Class 4 felony) and resisting a peace officer (a Class A misdemeanor).

On Aug. 19, 2025, Sykes allegedly carried an EIG .22 caliber revolver on his person which was uncased, loaded, and immediately accessible; he also allegedly had no valid Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) card at the time of the offense. He was additionally accused of resisting arrest by fleeing on foot from a police officer.

Wood River Police officers responded to “a report of a suspect brandishing a firearm at 11:15 a.m., walking two blocks from East-Alton Wood River High School,” according to the state’s petition to deny Sykes’s pretrial release from custody.

Once officers located Sykes, he reportedly fled and ran towards the high school before he was pursued and detained by police, who found “a revolver in his bag.”

“Defendant stated that he had the gun out because he was ‘playing with it,’ because it was broken,” the petition continues. “He further stated that he found it in an alley, purchased ammunition in St. Louis and continued to carry it for protection.”

Sykes currently remains in custody at the Madison County Jail pending trial in the case presented by the Wood River Police Department.

In a separate case filed on Aug. 21, 2025, Kirk D. Howard, 20, of Alton, was also charged with a Class 4 felony count of aggravated unlawful possession of weapons.

Howard allegedly carried a Polymer P80 9mm firearm in a vehicle which was uncased, loaded, and immediately accessible while he had no valid FOID card on June 3, 2025.

The Alton Police Department presented the case against Howard, who was granted pretrial release from custody.

All individuals charged are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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