Three suspects, including a 16-year-old, were arrested and charged with aggravated robbery Dec. 21 after they allegedly used BB guns to rob a man at the Chicago Transit Authority station at 711 Desplaines Ave.
According to a department report, the suspects and a fourth individual who was not charged were driving in the area looking for ways to get enough money to buy alcohol. It was decided that a robbery at the train station would be the easiest. Jose Quinones, 22, and Darnell Steele, 19, both of Maywood, used a pair of BB gun pistols to accost a man who was playing his saxophone at the station, according to police. The saxophone player insisted he had no money for the suspects, but both men pressed their guns against the man’s abdomen and demanded cash.
Quinones and Steele allegedly took the man’s wallet, which contained $6, two credit cards and some family photos.
When the victim used a pay phone to call police, authorities quickly tracked the suspects to a vehicle that was traveling north along First Avenue in Maywood. The car was stopped, the BB guns were located and the victim allegedly identified the culprits.
While in custody at the police station, both Quinones and Steele denied taking part in the robbery. However, the juvenile who was also charged, and the 17-year-old who was not, reportedly told police that all four individuals had plotted the robbery.
Women threatened
Within approximately 30 minutes, two women in Forest Park reported to police that a man had approached them as they were getting into or out of their car and threatened them with a gun. In neither case was a weapon displayed. Both relayed a similar conversation with the perpetrator.
It was shortly after midnight on Dec. 21 when, outside of 1029 Desplaines Ave., a stranger pulled open the rear driver’s side door of a woman’s car as she was parking. He allegedly asked “do you want to die,” then threatened that he had a gun and needed a ride. The suspect then asked for a purse, money and a cell phone, all of which the woman said she didn’t possess. Finally, the man instructed her to drive away, which she did, and called police from a 7-Eleven on Roosevelt.
Only a few minutes later, police were called about a similar incident that had occurred outside of 7639 Jackson. While a woman was leaving her friend’s home, she was approached by a man who asked “do you want to live.” He then indicated he had a gun, and the woman began kicking the man in his stomach and pressing the panic button on her car’s remote. The man fled and the woman was not injured in the altercation.
Inviting an arrest
A Brookfield woman was taken into custody shortly before 12:30 a.m. on Dec. 21 when she allegedly interfered with an officer’s efforts to bring another suspect into custody.
According to a department report, police were called to Carol’s bar, 7307 Roosevelt, on a complaint of a man who had urinated in the beer garden. While speaking with that suspect, 35-year-old Carrie England interrupted several times and attempted to take responsibility for the incident, according to police. Because she kept interjecting, police asked for her name. Intoxicated, England offered a false name and then explained she has a warrant out for her arrest, but that she expects to resolve that matter within the next day. She was arrested for obstructing the police and on the outstanding warrant.
However, police later learned that England did not have a warrant for her arrest and made several attempts to explain that to her. She was cited for obstruction and reminded that she did not need to appear in court for any warrants.
The man suspected of urinating in the beer garden was released with a warning.
Burglars take $8K in wires
Four men were caught by a surveillance camera Dec. 26 as they rummaged through a storage area at Currie Motors, 8401 Roosevelt, and allegedly stole about $8,000 worth of cables.
An employee arrived at the auto dealer that morning to plow the area, and didn’t initially notice that anything was out of place. However, when he and another employee went inside, they realized that about 1,000 feet of black cable with copper wire was missing. Surveillance footage showed that four men had been in the building for about 90 minutes until 5 a.m.
No arrests had been made when police filed their initial report on the incident.
These items were taken from the records of the Forest Park Police Department between Dec. 20 and Dec. 27, and represent only a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Anyone named in this report has only been charged with a crime. The cases have not been adjudicated.
-Compiled by Josh Adams
