Cash on bar ‘too sweet’ to resist
A patron of the Short Stop Tavern, 7425 Madison St., told police $14 in cash he had left on the bar disappeared when he left his seat to walk away and speak to a friend around midnight, Dec. 7. The bartender called the bar’s owner and the two viewed the incident on security cameras. The suspect on video who allegedly removed the money was still at the tavern, playing billiards. Police questioned the suspect, a 24-year-old Chicago man, who denied taking the money. He was arrested for theft. At the station, he told police he had observed the cash sitting at the bar which looked “too sweet” to resist. When he covered the money with his hand, no one on either side objected, so he pocketed the cash and walked away. The man said he wanted to return the money to the victim, who said he no longer wanted to file criminal complaints. The Chicago man was issued a local ordinance violation notice for theft.
Alleged shoplifter shoves guard
A female security guard at Walmart told police she observed a Forest Park man, 21, enter the electronics section of the store around 2:30 p.m., Dec. 5, select several DVDs and conceal them in his pants waistband. The man passed all points of purchase and exited the store without paying for the items. When a guard approached him outside to confront him about the DVDs, he allegedly pushed her in the chest in an attempt to flee the store with the merchandise. He was stopped by another security guard and escorted to the security office to await Forest Park police, who charged the man with battery and retail theft.
Cig break brawl
Two men were charged with fighting outside the Slainte tavern, 7505 Madison St., around 2:20 a.m. after an Oak Park man, 23, allegedly knocked the cigarette out of the hand of a River Forest man, 22, and then took a swing at him. The smoker swung back and the two scuffled on the ground until police arrived. They were issued local ordinance tickets for public fighting.
These items were obtained from the records of the Forest Park Police Department, Dec. 1-8, 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
