A man who made a scene at a local hot dog restaurant because he didn’t like his Italian beef sandwich was arrested on warrants charges on the eve of Nov. 26.

Police were dispatched to Portillo’s Hot Dogs, 7740 Roosevelt, after Julius Hightower, 35, of Poplar Bluff, Mo., created a disturbance in the restaurant when his sandwich was made “juicy” instead of “dry.”

The restaurant manager did not press charges, but police checked Hightower’s identification and learned that he had four instate warrants – two for failing to appear at a hearing related to driving without a license charges and two for violating an order of protection.

He was charged with the warrants but bonded out after being processed at the station. 

 

Couple arrested for drugs

A Roselle woman and her Bloomingdale boyfriend were nabbed on drug and warrant charges while at a local fast food restaurant on the eve of Nov. 28.

An officer performing a premise check at a Subway restaurant, 321 Harlem, heard 27-year-old Amanda Oneill repeatedly yelling the name “Alex” (her boyfriend’s name) from inside a restroom. The officer was concerned that something was wrong and knocked on the door to offer assistance, at which point Oneill emerged with her pants at her knees.

While Oneill explained to the officer that she was summoning her boyfriend, 24-year-old Alex Wemken, who was supposed to be looking after her son, two “small” bags of heroin fell from her jacket pocket.

Oneill was placed under arrest, and it was soon discovered that she also had on her eight additional bags of heroin, weighing a cumulative four grams, and two syringes.

Wemken was located in a car outside the restaurant with Oneill’s child and was arrested for a warrant stemming from his failure to appear at a hearing for retail theft charges.

The boy was placed in protective custody until his legal guardian arrived to pick him up.  

 

Hit and run ‘scared’ man who caused it

A Berwyn man accused of fleeing an accident he reportedly caused said he did so because he was “scared.”

Twenty-year-old Jesus Magallanes told police that he crashed into a cab on Roosevelt and 1st early Nov. 25 but left the scene because he feared the repercussions of driving with a suspended license.

According to a police report, the taxi driver pursued Magallenes’ vehicle all the way on to Interstate-290 in order to obtain his license plate number.

The driver, who had five passengers in the vehicle at the time, retrieved Magallenes’ information, but, in doing so, caused a three-car crash on the eastbound side of the Eisenhower.

Police eventually located Magallenes at his Berwyn home, which they were able to find by entering his license plate number into the Secretary of State’s database.

He was charged with improper turn at an intersection, hit and run, and driving with a suspended license.

 

Speeding woman slapped with other charges

Macaro Gaunchaux, 43, of Forest Park, was arrested on a number of charges after police initially stopped her for speeding on Harlem near Interstate-290 early Nov. 24. Her vehicle was curbed at the abovementioned spot, and when she failed to produce a valid license, the officer performed a computer check on her license and learned that it was suspended.

What’s more, an unspecified amount of marijuana in two small bags was found in her car. She was arrested and charged with speeding, driving with a suspended license, operating an uninsured vehicle, and cited for a cannabis offense. 

 

Attempted strong-arm robbery

Two offenders unsuccessfully attempted to rob a man in front of his home on the 100 block of Elgin on the night of Nov. 26. The victim was reportedly on his way home from CVS Pharmacy, 7216 Circle, when two suspects approached him in front of his building and demanded his wallet.

The man responded by cursing at the suspects and telling them they were “under arrest,” to which they responded by fleeing the scene. Police said that no one has been apprehended and that they have no leads at this point. The victim has no reported police affiliation.  

-Compiled by Nick Moroni

These items were taken from the records of the Forest Park Police Department between Nov. 21 and Nov. 28, 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.