Man pretends to be owner in rental scam
A 45-year-old Chicago man told Forest Park police he responded to a Craigslist ad for an apartment rental on Harlem Avenue. The man met with the renter, a 27-year-old Forest Park man twice, on Aug. 11 and 13, and gave $1,500 as a security deposit and first month’s rent. He was told the apartment would be ready Aug. 27. On Aug. 27 around 12:30 p.m., the new tenant “found out that he was not the real owner.” The real owner gave the victim his money back, according to the police report. The perpetrator has not been found, and the police report notes he was involved in two previous similar incidents in 2016 and 2017.
Taking flight
Forest Park police officers arrested 23-year-old Daniel Dixon for felony aggravated DUI and aggravated fleeing an officer on Aug. 27 around 6:30 p.m.
Officers saw Dixon in a 2017 Nissan driving out of Walmart’s parking lot “at a high rate of speed.” The Nissan also failed to yield to a stop sign and “nearly struck another vehicle” as it drove northbound on Desplaines Avenue.
Officers tried to curb the Nissan as it turned onto Roosevelt Road, but the Nissan began to accelerate and “continued at a high rate of speed.” The Nissan was clocked “in excess” of 80 miles per hour in a 25 mile per hour zone and was seen swerving in and out of traffic and reportedly nearly hit a pedestrian at Circle Avenue and Roosevelt Road. The Nissan got on I-290 and eventually crashed into a Honda.
Dixon fled on foot and was stopped by Oak Park police near the 300 block of Garfield Street in Oak Park. Officers saw a bottle of vodka, nearly empty on the floor of the Nissan. Dixon’s speech was slurred, according to the report, and he told officers he was celebrating his “birthday all weekend.” His blood alcohol content at the time of arrest was .122, almost twice the legal limit of .08. He reportedly told officers he didn’t realize police were pursuing him until he was on I-290.
Burglary to auto
A 27-year-old Forest Park woman reported to police on Aug. 28 around 7 a.m. that someone had taken loose change, a backpack, a wallet and $10 in cash from her parked and unlocked 2015 Volkswagen Jetta. The incident, which happened sometime between Aug. 27 at 10 p.m. and Aug. 28 around 7 a.m. was on the 1100 block of Harlem Avenue. Total loss is estimated at $315.
Motor vehicle theft
A 69-year-old Forest Park man told police someone stole his parked 1998 Audi A4 from the 7200 block of Adams Street. The theft happened sometime between Aug. 27 around 2 p.m. and Aug. 28 around 3 p.m.
Burglary
A Forest Park woman told police someone broke into her apartment on the 7300 block of Roosevelt Road sometime between Aug. 23 and 28 and took a black-and-white Tommy Hilfiger purse. The woman, who said she was out of town during the break-in, told police she had locked the front and back door before leaving. Police found no signs of forced entry to the front or back doors or the windows.
Graffiti
CTA employees, on Aug. 27 around 10 p.m., discovered about $5,000 worth of damage to several CTA train cars at 1 S. Harlem Ave. Someone had cut a razor wire fence and then jumped another 5-foot fence to get into the rail yard. “MTS,” “Error,” and “Jaezo” were found painted on the train cars.
Sorry, and sad
Forest Park police stopped a 30-year-old Oak Park man outside a bar on the 7600 block of Madison Street on Aug. 27 around 3 a.m. after they saw him run toward a parked car with what looked to be a beer can in his hand. Officers approached the car and saw a spilled beer on the ground next to the car. The man reportedly said, “Sorry.” Officers then did a name check on the man and discovered he had an active Cook County arrest warrant for DUI. The man was taken into custody.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, Aug. 28-Sept. 1, 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 Thomas Vogel
