Two teenaged males, aged 16 and 17, were charged with aggravated vehicular hijacking, aggravated discharge of a firearm, motor vehicle theft, and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon on April 4 at 9:23 p.m.
The owner of the stolen vehicle was sitting in her car on the 300 block of Elgin Avenue with her girlfriend when two males approached the driver and passenger side doors. The driver reported one of the suspects putting a gun to the back of her head, and both women exited the car, at which time the two males got inside and fled. The car owner said she heard a “pop” that sounded like a gunshot.
Other witnesses said they heard a gunshot in the area and observed two cars, including the stolen vehicle, fleeing the area. Police observed a spent shell casing on the windshield of the vehicle after it was recovered. The shell matched the ammunition in the gun found in the Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol found under the front passenger seat after the vehicle was located and the two juveniles arrested.
The stolen car was located at Harlem and I-290, where an officer positioned his car to block traffic. He then unholstered his firearm and pointed it at the driver, who was attempting to maneuver the car through the backed-up traffic toward the officer.
Both the driver and passenger eventually exited the car and were taken into police custody. A quick vehicle search revealed the gun under the front passenger seat with two rounds missing from the 30-round magazine. One was in the chamber of the gun. The gun had the fresh odor of gun powder, and residue in the barrel and chamber indicated to the officer that the gun had recently been fired, according to the police report. Gunshot residue testing was done. The two suspects were processed and taken to the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center.
Gun stolen from apartment
A Canik model TP9 Elite SC 9mm black semi-automatic pistol in a locked carrying case was reported stolen from a woman’s apartment on the 1100 block of Beloit Avenue on April 2 at 3:36 p.m. The owner of the gun, who met all legal requirements for ownership of the pistol, had placed the locked case in a bedroom closet in her apartment before going out of town and handing over keys to her apartment to a friend. The friend denied taking the firearm, the serial number of which was entered into the Law Enforcement Agencies Data System (LEADS).
Burglary reported in apartment building
Police were called when residents of an apartment in a building on the 7200 block of Roosevelt Road heard the sound of a door being kicked in down the hall. A resident of the building said she observed the rear common entrance to the building had been forced open as had the door to one of the units in the building. Officers cleared the apartment and did not find an offender. The tenant was also not in the apartment. Other residents of the building said they didn’t hear anything, and that particular door is often wide open, according to the police report. Neither the building landlord nor the tenant could be reached by phone, but officers left a voicemail for the tenant advising to contact the department with a list of any missing items.
Man arrested for dealing drugs in bar
Twelve plastic baggies containing suspected cannabis and 220 pills, suspected to be Xanax, were found in a bag and in the jacket pockets of a man trespassing in a bar on the 7400 block of Madison Street on April 3 at 2:14 a.m. Bar employees called police because they believed the man was selling drugs. He had been removed from the bar on a previous occasion and admitted to police that he knew he wasn’t allowed to be there as he’d been prohibited from being on the premises.
He was charged with trespassing, possession of cannabis over 30 grams, manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance, and possession of a controlled substance. According to the police report, the subject is “known to FPPD units from many previous encounters on Madison Street.”
CTA trains defaced
Two CTA trains at 1 Harlem Ave. were defaced with graffiti, which was reported on April 3 at 4:49 p.m. The cost to clean the cars was unknown at the time of the police report.
Woman throws objects at bus
Police were called to the 7200 block of Madison Street on April 1 at 12:59 p.m. by a CTA bus driver who reported an unknown woman was throwing objects at the outside of the bus. No damage appeared to have been done, but the driver’s dispatcher said they needed a report of the incident.
Subject assaults Pace bus employee
A Pace bus employee reported being struck in the face by a passenger who boarded the vehicle without a mask and was asked to leave. The incident occurred on April 1 at 3:54 p.m. on the corner of Desplaines Avenue and Roosevelt Road. According to the employee, when he asked the unmasked passenger to get off the bus, the subject struck him on the left side of his face with an open hand. Police recognized the man as a person experiencing homelessness who frequents the area near that intersection. Pace employees asked that the subject be removed and asked not to get on the Pace bus again.
Woman too loud in apartment
A woman on the 1000 block of Marengo Avenue was issued a citation for disorderly conduct after yelling so loudly from inside her second-floor apartment that residents on the first floor couldn’t sleep and called police on March 30 at 1:29 a.m.
The reporting officer said the woman’s yelling could be heard from outside on the front lawn.
The officer attempted to make contact with the woman, but she continued to scream and yell and refused to answer the door. Instead, she yelled at the police, who said in their report that she sounded intoxicated. This is not the first time she has been issued a citation for a similar event, according to the police report.
Man overdoses after long time in 7-Eleven bathroom
A man at the 7-Eleven, 205 Harlem Ave., was “groaning and yelling” so loudly inside the single occupant bathroom for over 20 minutes that police were called on March 29 at 8:39 a.m. to check on him. The door was locked, and police knocked. The man said he’d be right out, according to the police report.
The officer waited another 20 minutes before the subject finally came out. He told police he was on parole and wearing an Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) ankle bracelet. While police were talking to a representative from IDOC, the subject started to show signs of an acute narcotics overdose and altered mental status, so paramedics were called for immediate transport to the hospital.
Property damaged in hit-and-run
A woman on the 1300 block of Elgin Avenue reported damage to her property from a hit-and-run on March 29 at 4:01 p.m. Police observed visible damage to the garage and fence in the rear of the residence, as well as debris on the ground. The resident gave police pieces of a broken tail/brake light that she reported had been on the ground as well. The resident said the damage had occurred in the overnight hours between March 22 and 23.
Multiple citations for open alcohol issued
On March 30 at 10:05 p.m., police were called to the 300 block of Desplaines Avenue for a report of two people fighting. Officers arrived to find a female subject bleeding from her mouth and head. Two male subjects stood on the sidewalk near several open, unsealed bottles of suspected alcohol. There were also some cups next to the bottles. The woman said she’d fallen but was fine. The men, who according to the police report were actively drinking alcohol while talking to the police, said they’d tried to help the woman. An ambulance arrived, but the woman refused care. The men were issued tickets for open containers after officers collected the open bottles and cups and disposed of them.
A woman at Madison Street and Beloit Avenue was issued a local ordinance citation for open alcohol when police saw her walking with a can of White Claw on April 3 at 12:23 a.m. She apologized to police and quickly disposed of the drink in a trash can.
In four separate incidents, individuals were issued local ordinance citations for open alcohol on the 7400 block of Madison Street on April 4. The times of these occurrences were 12:31 a.m., 1:05 a.m.., 1:11 a.m. and 2:29 a.m.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, March 29-April 4, 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