Community hoping that arrest will break Carrick case

From the Sunday, July 20, 2008 edition of the Northwest Herald:

Community hoping that arrest will break Carrick case
By DIANA SROKA - dsroka@nwherald.com
and JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI - jduchnowski@nwherald.com

JOHNSBURG – Ryan Haynes said he still gets goosebumps when he thinks about the unsolved disappearance of Johnsburg High School senior Brian Carrick.

Haynes, who lived behind Carrick’s house for about seven years, paused to reflect on the case’s latest developments Saturday afternoon at Half Time Bar and Grill. Throughout the town, many people were aware that a former employee at Val’s Foods, where Carrick last was seen in December 2002, was charged Friday in connection with the case that authorities believe was a homicide.

“The family needs closure,” said Haynes, who often saw Carrick’s siblings play outside in his neighborhood.

Robert Render, 22, remained in McHenry County Jail on Saturday evening on $40,000 bond on a charge of concealing a homicidal death. Prosecutors allege that Render knew that Carrick was killed.

Render was appointed a special public defender Saturday morning in McHenry County court. He stood quietly with his hands behind his back as a judge read the indictment for the Class 3 felony charge that a grand jury approved last week.

If convicted of the charge, Render could be sentenced to two to five years in prison. His next court date is scheduled for Thursday.

Carrick’s family declined to comment on the arrest Saturday. But residents in and around Johnsburg praised authorities for not giving up on the case and said they hoped that the latest developments would prompt more answers.

“I think anytime you don’t have a body it’s harder to try,” said Scott Kantenwein of Ingleside. “In a town so small, somebody knows something.”

Last year, authorities charged Mario Casciaro of McHenry with eight counts of perjury in connection with the investigation. Casciaro, now 25, also worked at Val’s Foods.

Casciaro allegedly told another man, Alan Lippert, that Carrick’s body was dismembered and thrown into a river in Iowa, among other statements. But Casciaro denied making those claims when he was asked about them before a grand jury in February 2007.

Casciaro also denied telling Lippert that he “directed Shane Lamb to scare Brian Carrick, and things got out of hand.” Casciaro, who was released on $50,000 bond last year, is next expected in court Aug. 26.

Lamb was released from Taylorville Correctional Center on parole in April. He served about two years for an aggravated battery that occurred in DeKalb County, according to Illinois Department of Corrections records.

The case’s latest developments caused Steve Wilkins of Ringwood to reflect on his own children and grandchildren as he walked into the Johnsburg Public Library on Saturday.

“I hope this brings closure,” he said, “so they find out what happened to their child.”

– Northwest Herald reporter Tom Musick contributed to this story.