Rapping for charity — at 3 a.m.
Forest Park police arrested a 24-year-old resident in the 1100 block of Dunlop for playing loud music in the wee hours twice on Feb. 10. They had been called to talk to him three other times in the past two weeks. According to police reports, the man appeared intoxicated the first time they arrived at 2:39 a.m. and asked him to turn down the music, which was causing neighbors to complain. He was issued a local ordinance citation for loud music. On the police’s second visit around 3:25 a.m., officers reported they could hear the man yelling from his third-floor unit, “Yea, I got my window open! It’s black history month and I have the right! A black man rapping to raise money for charity! What ya gonna do call the cops?”
When confronted by police, he again explained he was rapping for charity. He was taken into custody for one count of reckless conduct.
Gabbing on the cell phone
Forest Park police observed a 32-year-old Berwyn man speaking on a cellphone as he drove his 2000 Lexus near the intersection of Thomas Avenue and Harrison Street around 8:30 a.m. Feb. 10. When cops pulled him over, they found he had an active warrant from the DuPage County Sheriff’s office for traffic violations. He was transported to the Forest Park police station and held until he paid bond for the traffic warrant.
Catalytic converter thefts
Someone removed the catalytic converter from a 2003 Pontiac Sunfire parked between Feb. 7-9 in the Mom’s Place restaurant parking lot in the 800 block of Harlem Avenue. The car’s owner said his catalytic converter had been sawed off in December 2013, but he hadn’t reported it. Estimated damage was $300.
A catalytic converter was cut from a 2003 Pontiac Grand Am parked in the Walmart parking lot, 1300 Desplaines Ave. around 1:30 p.m. Feb. 13.
Alleged Walmart shoplifter drops cell phone during getaway
Forest Park police were summoned around 7:45 p.m. Feb. 11 by Walmart staff at 1300 Desplaines Ave. after loss prevention employees saw a man allegedly switch tags on two electronic items and then pay 10 percent of the price at the self-checkout. Staff said they observed the suspect select a RUKU3 streaming player and a MYBOOK external hard drive from the electronics section of the store. They said he then allegedly taped different UPC tags over the tags on the two boxed items. He paid for the items at the self-checkout lane, they told police. The suspect paid $21.63 for the items which should have had a retail value of $217, staff said. When loss prevention staff tried to stop him near the doors, the man allegedly left the cart containing his items behind and fled, pushing through the electric doors with his shoulder. As he fled towards a blue Buick LaCrosse with Indiana plates, Walmart staff told police he dropped his Samsung Galaxy Note II cell phone in the parking lot. While police were investigating, the phone rang and the woman on the other end identified herself as the girlfriend of the phone’s owner. She was told the phone was found in the parking lot and the owner could pick it up at the Forest Park police station.
Waukegan man arrested for forgery
Forest Park police drove to Waukegan Feb. 12 to arrest a 27-year-old man after an investigation into the cashing of forged paychecks from Forest Park-based temporary labor company R.E.M. According to reports, the company said in November an employee had deposited a payroll check twice, once by electronic deposit and then by cashing checks at the currency exchange. The company also reported a person forged two checks and cashed them at a Lake Bluff currency exchange. One of the forged checks was made out to the Waukegan man for $2,516.73. The amount of the other check was $3,108.14. When he was taken to the Forest Park police station from his Waukegan address, he reportedly told police he was asked to cash the checks by an unknown woman on the street and said he “had a hunch something was not right.” The Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney approved one count of felony forgery for the suspect.
Spaghetti incident
Police were summoned to break up a midnight food fight between a 37-year-old Forest Park man and his 26-year-old girlfriend in the 900 block of Troost Avenue Feb. 13. The couple, who live together, told police an argument turned physical and she threw food at him. According to reports, he threw a plate of spaghetti at her, striking her in the face. Both refused medical attention and refused to sign complaints.
Pot in sock, wad of cash in pocket
Forest Park police in plain clothes observed a 2010 Chevy Malibu which did not turn right from the right-only lane at Wisconsin Avenue and Madison Street in Oak Park around 3:30 p.m. Feb. 13. A strong odor of unburned cannabis emitted from the car. The driver and passenger exited the Chevy and police recovered from the passenger a plastic baggie containing several packaged baggies of pot and a blunt (marijuana cigarette) from the man’s sock. During a safety patdown police also recovered a wad of $3,540 from the Chicago man’s front pocket. He told police it was his wife’s tax return money and the two were on their way to buy a car “in Addison.” Police took the man into custody and confiscated the cash and cannabis. He was charged with pot possession. The driver was cited for improper lane usage.
These items were obtained from the records of the Forest Park Police Department, Feb. 7-14, 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
Contact:
Email: jlotus@forestparkreview.com Twitter: FP_Review
