Chicago Man Charged With Using Jamming Device To Block Commuters From Using Cell Phones

Nicholl shown jamming cell phones

A 63-year old accountant from Chicago, Dennis Nicholl, became irritated that commuters on the CTA train were constantly talking on their cell phones around him. Nicholl imported an illegal cell phone jamming device from China and began taking it with him when he rode the train. Nicholl would take a seat on the train, pull out the black device with five antennas and as soon as he turned it on, anyone talking on a cell phone would discover that their calls had been dropped.

Angry commuters suspecting Nicholl was responsible for the dropped calls began taking photos of him and circulating them on the Internet. On Tuesday, a team of undercover officers followed Nicholl when he got on the Red Line at Loyola Station. When Nicholl turned on the device and an undercover officer's cell phone dropped, he was immediately placed under arrest for felony interference with a public utility.

Co-workers of Nicholl told the Chicago Tribune they were surprised that a man they described as "timid and not very social" had been arrested as the notorious cell phone jammer on the CTA line. Nicholl works as a financial planner for the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System. His attorney told The Tribune that his client only wanted some peace and quiet when he rode the train to work. According to The Tribune, this is not Nicholl's first offense. He was previously charged and convicted of the same offense in 2009.