A woman on the 400 block of Marengo Ave. was allegedly attacked by four individuals, two men and two women, when she went outside to smoke a cigarette and take out the trash on Dec. 26 at 1:37 a.m.

According to the victim, a man approached her, called her a racist, and punched her in the face. The punch knocked her down, at which point two women began to kick her, while a fourth male subject screamed at her with racial insults.

The victim said she was able to get off the ground and run inside her apartment. Police observed red marks on her forehead and cuts and scrapes on her hands. She said she believed the offenders live in the apartments above hers.

Later, police were called to the same address, but this time from the alleged offender(s)’ apartment, because the victim’s husband was banging on the apartment door demanding someone come out and explain why his wife was attacked earlier in the day.

Vehicles, both with keys inside, stolen

A vehicle was stolen from the 800 block of Desplaines Ave. overnight between Dec. 21 and 22. The victim told police he last saw his car at around 9 p.m. on Dec. 21 when he left for a friend’s house. He said he leaves a set of keys inside the vehicle and keeps a second set with him. When he returned the next day at 3:20 p.m., the car was gone.

A car was stolen from Thornton’s, 601 Harlem Ave., on Dec. 27 at 3:37 a.m. when the victim left it running, keys inside, to go into the gas station store.

Car windows broken

The rear driver side window of a car was broken on the 1300 block of Circle Ave. during the overnight hours between Dec. 24 and 25. The victim discovered the window broken, but it is unknown what the offender or offenders used to break the window. It did not appear to police that the offender made entry into the vehicle.

A vehicle was ransacked on the 1200 block of Elgin Ave. overnight between Dec. 24 and 25. The victim reported that an unknown offender broke the rear driver side window of her vehicle while it was parked outside her residence. The driver side doors were ajar, according to the police report, and her vehicle was ransacked, though according to the victim it didn’t look like anything had been taken.

These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, Dec. 21-27, 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 Maria Maxham