On June 25 about 5:30 p.m., police were summoned to the 7400 block of Dixon, where witnesses said a man was on the ground being beaten by several men. The victim was found, walking near Brown and Randolph streets bleeding from the side of his head. He told police he was walking with an acquaintance when three other men approached and all four began to beat him, stealing his gold chain with a praying-hands medallion and his iPhone 4. The acquaintance, Gregory L. Bell-Bey, 18, of Forest Park, who was familiar to police, was quickly apprehended. Police reportedly recovered the medallion and chain from Bell-Bey’s front pants pocket. He was charged with felony robbery. Bell-Bey is being held in Cook County jail. A Cook County judge set bond at $100,000. His next court date is July 13 at the Maybrook courthouse.
Early morning el robbery
A man told police he was beaten and robbed by three unknown men on the CTA Blue Line platform at the Harlem stop around 2 a.m. on June 26. The men allegedly began to punch the victim several times in the face and removed from his pants pockets a Samsung cellphone, a black hair comb and a small wallet with CTA passes inside. They also reportedly stole a black baseball cap with a New York logo. The men fled onto a train. The victim was bleeding from the nose and lip but declined medical attention.
Aggressive panhandling
Two customers at McDonald’s, Desplaines Avenue and Madison Street, called police on June 25 about 6:30 p.m. after a Chicago man, about 20 years old, approached them as they were attempting to lock their bikes to a bike rack The man reportedly stared at them from a close distance for several moments and followed them inside. According to reports, the two customers felt uncomfortable and exited the restaurant, and the man followed them outside. He then stood in front of their bicycles and asked for money. When they refused, he allegedly threw a McDonald’s bag, hitting one in the leg as the customer rode away on a bicycle. Police arrived and the victims identified the man, who was arrested and charged with battery.
Drummers, not spellers
Two young men from Chicago were issued local ordinance citations on June 26 about 12:30 p.m. in the 600 block of Harlem for setting up a drum at the intersection of Harlem and I-290 and “banging away” while soliciting donations. Noise complaints were filed from the 600 block of Elgin. According to the report, the men had a sign requesting funds for “are youth program.”
These items were obtained from the records of the Forest Park Police Department, June 25-26, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anyone named in the report has only been charged with a crime.
– Compiled by Jean Lotus
