Another arrest in Forest Park drug investigation
On the heels of making an arrest of a suspected drug dealer in North Riverside earlier this month, Forest Park police and members of the West Suburban Drug and Gang Enforcement (WEDGE) task force raided a home in Brookfield last week, charging a 26-year-old man with multiple drug offenses.
Michael N. Twist, of Brookfield, was charged with manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance, two counts of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia after police executed a search warrant at his residence in the 3100 block of Maple Avenue on March 21 about 6:20 a.m.
A drug-sniffing dog was used to aid police in their search for narcotics inside the Brookfield home. In a basement TV room, police reported finding 5 grams of heroin packaged for sale in foil packets and plastic bags along with a digital scale with white powder residue and numerous pieces of a white, rock-like substance (a half gram in total) suspected to be crack cocaine.
Police also seized as evidence a “portrait of numerous Mob gangsters” from the basement TV room.
From Twist’s bedroom, police reported finding $250 in cash and a cellphone described in the complaint that led to the search warrant being issued.
Twist reportedly told police he sells the drugs to support his own habit and to provide money for his family.
He apparently posted bond after a hearing on March 22 and is free awaiting a preliminary court date on April 9.
Cash grabber nabbed
Forest Park police arrested Victor L. Thigpen, 57, of Glendale Heights, on March 22 just after noon after Thigpen allegedly grabbed $100 from the cash register of a Forest Park tavern.
A bartender at Angelo O’Leary’s, 7522 Madison St., told police he was entering the bar area from the office when he saw a man standing behind the bar at the cash register. When the man saw the bartender he ran from the business. The employee noticed $100 in $5 bills was missing from the register.
A River Forest police officer detained a subject matching the description given by the bartender, later identified as Thigpen, at Madison and Franklin shortly after the theft was reported. Police reported recovering $100 from Thigpen and obtained still photos showing Thigpen next to the cash register of the bar from the tavern’s security camera system.
Thigpen was charged with felony theft.
Convicted thief caught again
Terrence M. Jones, 46, of Chicago, faces a felony retail theft charge after he allegedly stole $100 in vodka from CVS, 7216 Circle Ave., and fled the scene in a white Mazda on March 18 about 9:40 a.m.
A store employee called police and Oak Park officers stopped a vehicle matching the getaway car in the 300 block of Madison Street in Oak Park. Jones was turned over to Forest Park police who reportedly were able to identify him as the offender.
Jones reportedly was stopped by an employee outside the store after he was seen taking several bottles off the shelf and concealing them inside his jacket.
When confronted by an employee, Jones allegedly gave one bottle back but kept the others and got into the car, which was driven by a woman.
Police reported finding two bottles of vodka inside the car. Jones reportedly was convicted of retail theft in 2002. He also was wanted on a warrant for theft issued by Cook County Sheriff’s Police.
He is being held without bond at Cook County Jail, awaiting a March 26 court date.
Bike thefts
A 41-year-old woman called police on March 16 at 7:34 p.m. to report that her Raleigh hybrid mountain bike, which had been locked up near the intersection of Circle Avenue and Harrison Street, had been stolen.
The bike had been left unattended for about an hour and a half, said the victim. When she returned, the bike lock had been cut and the bike was missing. In addition, the bike had a silver children’s tandem attachment on the back. The total value of the loss was estimated at about $500.
A resident of the 200 block of Marengo Avenue called police on March 17 to report that sometime between noon on March 15 and 9:25 p.m. on March 17, someone entered the garage at her apartment building and removed an unsecured bright green, adult-size mountain bike. A black wire basket that had been mounted on the front of the bike was found inside the garage.
The bike was valued at $150.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, March 8-15, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anybody named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. These cases have not been adjudicated.
Compiled by Bob Uphues
