Search for suspect after alleged domestic incident in Rockton

Responding to a report of domestic violence, Rockton Police found a woman with dog bites and other injuries when they arrived on Thursday, May 22, 2025, shortly before 6:30 p.m., at a home in the 800 block of Meadow Crest Drive in the Wingate subdivision of Rockton, Illinois, south of Wyndham Lane.

The suspect remains at large, identified as 41-year-old Victor Manuel Ortega, charged with Domestic Battery, Aggravated Unlawful Restraint, Aggravated Assault. Interfering with a Report of Domestic Violence, and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon by a Felon.

Police note that, "the charges are merely accusations, and all individuals are considered innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. If you have information on this incident, other incidents, or know the whereabouts of Ortega, please contact Rockford Area Crime Stoppers (815-963-7867) or Rockton Sgt. Detective Davies at davies@rocktonpolice.org (815-624-6893)."

Several women have filed for an order of protection against Ortega over the years. In 2001, Ortega was convicted of domestic battery for making "physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature with any family or household member." He was in prison from May 2018 to March 2019 for domestic battery causing bodily harm and resisting a police officer, one of several such charges. But between 2001-2016 and 2020-2025, he had mostly traffic citations. Before moving to Meadowcrest Drive in Rockton this year, he lived on Edge Rock Road in Rockton, also in the Wingate subdivision, and Longest Drive in South Beloit, as well as Chisholm Trail in Rockford.