Sex offender pleads not guilty

DIXON – A Dixon man who is a registered sex offender pleaded not guilty Wednesday to sexually assaulting a teenager in April.

Ronald S. Gapski, 49, 6261⁄2 W. Second St., is charged with two counts of criminal sexual assault, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

He was appointed a public defender during a brief court appearance Wednesday. He was in Lee County Jail on $500,000 bond, and has a pretrial conference Aug. 26.

Gapski allegedly assaulted the teen once in late April, a family friend reported it in May, and an arrest warrant was issued July 2.

Police received a tip that Gapski was staying with a relative in Janesville, Wis., and Janesville police tracked him to a house and attempted to arrest him July 19.

He got on the roof and threatened to kill himself with a butcher knife, but was taken into custody 4 hours later after a SWAT team fired tear gas around the house.

Gapski was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 1997 for sexually assaulting a Lee County 17-year-old, and 10 years for unlawful use of a firearm by a felon.