Attempted Laundromat burglary a wash
Someone broke into the Laundry Room, a 24-hour Laundromat at 206 Desplaines, in the early morning of Aug. 8, and pried open the deadbolt lock of the office. Pry marks were observed by officers on the safe door for the wall-mounted change machines.
Police contacted a customer/witness who said she had been washing laundry around 5:30 a.m. and thought she was the only person in the building when she heard banging sounds coming from the office. An unknown man suddenly exited the office, made eye contact with her and then ran away. Surveillance video showed an unidentified man entering the business around 4:53 a.m. and breaking open the door with his shoulders.
No money was removed from the business.
Conversation killers
Police observed a 29-year-old Forest Park man chatting on a cellphone around 8:38 a.m., Aug. 4, as he traveled in the 1100 block of Desplaines in his Ford Econoline. Having come to their attention, his expired license was noted, and the Econoline was towed and held while he was required to pay an I-Bond of $150 bond (10 percent of $1,500) and slapped with a Maybrook court date.
Cops saw a 40-year-old Chicago man yammering on a cellphone as he drove his 2012 Dodge Charger southbound on Harlem Avenue around 11:30 p.m., Aug. 6, and curbed the car. A name check of the driver revealed he had a suspended license. The Charger was impounded for administrative and tow fees, and he was charged with unlawful use of electronic device and driving with license suspended.
A 37-year-old Chicago man was pulled over in his 2014 green Chevy around 9 a.m., Aug. 8, after police saw him speaking into a cellphone at Roosevelt Road and Lathrop Avenue. He was charged with illegally using a phone and driving with license suspended. The Chevy was towed.
Singer vs. swinger
A man, who admitted he was intoxicated, refused to press charges after being punched in the face in the Submarine Tender restaurant around 1:43 a.m., Aug. 7. The intoxicated man said while he waited in line at the sub shop, he began singing a song and that’s when a 24-year-old River Forest man struck him on the left side of the face 4-6 times with a closed fist. Police observed the victim had redness and swelling around his left eye. The attacker admitted to officers he did throw a punch, but it was because the victim was “so obnoxious and used racial slurs in the restaurant.” He was charged with public fighting.
Barefoot burglar
A witness observed a man wearing a T-shirt, sweatpants and no shoes breaking into his neighbor’s 2007 Pontiac G6, parked in the 1500 block of South Harlem Avenue, around 8:45 p.m., Aug. 4. He fled northbound in the alley. Police arrived and found a wallet with the ID of a 22-year-old Northbrook man and a pocket knife on top of the car. The passenger-door handle was damaged and lying on the ground. The wallet’s owner was picked up at the Citgo gas station, still shoe-free, and police recovered a metal hash pipe and a prescription pill vial, also with the bungling burglar’s name on it. The man told police he has epilepsy and was cruising in his car and had no memory of what happened. He was charged with criminal damage to property and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Delivereth and taketh away
A Southern Wine and Spirits delivery man told police he accidentally left the door unlocked on the freightliner truck he was unloading behind CVS at 7200 Circle Ave. around 2:50 p.m., Aug. 5. Missing from the cab was a Garmin GPS unit and a cellphone. Store security provided a video showing a suspect walking away from the vehicle.
Landscaping items on a jaunt
Someone pulled a lawnmower and two leafblowers out of an unlocked garage in the 600 block of Thomas Avenue, during the early morning hours of Aug. 7, and left them on the apron of the garage, possibly for later pickup. A watchful neighbor observed the items and called police. The garage owner said his son’s child-size bike was missing from the garage.
Other thefts
Someone cut the lock on an apartment building storage area and removed a vacuum worth $80 in the 300 block of Desplaines Avenue sometime before Aug. 7.
A black and yellow 1999 specialized Rock Hopper bike, locked to the rack at 1 S. Harlem Avenue the morning of Aug. 4, was gone by 6 p.m. when its owner returned to Forest Park. Loss was estimated at $700.
Two other bikes were cut from the same bike rack between 1:15 and 6:45 p.m. Aug. 9.
A child’s BMS bike was removed from the backyard of a residence in the 1000 block of Beloit after the family went on an emergency trip and left the bike unsecured. Estimated value was $120.
Careless use of white-out reveals forgery
A 22-year-old Hillside man was issued several tickets at a traffic stop after officers noted the United Auto Insurance card he proffered looked as though it had been “hit with some white out, then drawn back over,” police reports said. A quick phone call confirmed the officer’s suspicions that the insurance card was a fake. A policy had been opened and then cancelled in April 2013. The driver of the 2002 Cadillac was issued citations for expired registration, no proof of insurance and possession of a false auto insurance card.
These items were obtained from the records of the Forest Park Police Department, Aug. 3-10, 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: jean@forestparkreivew
Twitter: @FP_Review
