An armed robbery occurred at Metro PCS, 7226 Roosevelt Rd., on April 7 at 2:15 p.m. An employee of the store reported that a male entered the store wearing a full ski mask. He approached the counter and asked to see a new iPad. According to the police report, the employee said an ID was required to look at the products.
Allegedly, the suspect headed to the exit, saying he would get his identification and come back, but then turned around and lifted his shirt to reveal a gun in his waist band.
“Let me save you the trouble; where do you keep all the phones?” the suspect then allegedly asked.
The employee told the suspect that the phones were in the back room, and he ordered her to take him there, which she did. He grabbed a few iPhones and fled the store. He was last seen headed southbound on Elgin Avenue with the phones in his arms.
Man steals baseball cards in baby wipes box
A man at Walmart, 1300 Desplaines Ave., took a box of baby wipes from the shelf, emptied it, and put approximately 20 packs of baseball cards inside the container on April 9 at 5:54 p.m.
He then proceeded to the self-checkout, where he scanned the box of baby wipes but not the card packs he’d put inside. The value of the cards was $218.60. He was escorted to the loss prevention office to wait for police and was issued a local ordinance citation for retail theft.
Improperly stored gun nets felony
A man with a valid firearm owner’s ID card but no concealed carry license was charged with a felony for having a loaded gun under the driver’s seat of his vehicle.
Police originally approached the man because he reportedly was drinking in his car in the 400 block of Thomas Avenue on April 10 at 12:11 a.m.
Because of the open alcohol, officers said they were going to search his vehicle and asked if he had anything illegal in the car. He said no.
But officers reported discovering a 9 mm Glock 19 handgun with a fully loaded magazine under the driver’s seat. A bottle of Peroni brand beer was also found in the vehicle.
The driver said he’d purchased the gun legally because he was robbed approximately two years ago. He said he put the gun under his seat earlier in the week and forgot about it. By law, because he does not have a CCL, the gun should have been locked, unloaded and out of reach.
The passenger, who like the driver was drinking, was issued a citation for open alcohol, police said.
Unlawful use of weapon, DUI
A man was charged with felony offenses of unlawful use and possession of a weapon and charged with driving under the influence, no insurance and improper parking on a roadway when he was found drunk and passed out behind the wheel on Roosevelt Road and Desplaines Avenue on April 10 at 3:07 a.m.
His vehicle was in the middle of the intersection, and when police knocked on the window, he would wake up for a moment, then close his eyes again. The car was in drive and the man’s foot was on the brake, police said.
Eventually police got the man to respond, and he put the car in park and exited the vehicle, at which point officers noticed the strong smell of alcohol emitting from him. He was unsteady with slurred speech and am ambulance was called, but the man refused medical treatment.
Officers then noticed a bullet hole in the windshield and two live rounds on the driver’s side floor mat. They reported locating a 9 mm “ghost gun” of unknown make and model under the passenger’s seat.
Hard on the furniture
A man was arrested on April 8 at 8:16 p.m. on the 300 block of Desplaines Avenue after allegedly hitting his neighbor’s patio furniture and patio door with a broom.
The neighbor had called police earlier that evening about the man creating a disturbance, and the man promised to stay inside. But he didn’t, said police, and about an hour later the neighbor complained again and police charged the man with disorderly conduct.
Turtle-shaped planter stolen
A turtle-shaped flower planter was reported stolen from a residence on the 600 block of Grove Lane on April 6 at 8:10 a.m. The approximate value is $25.
Reckless driving during funeral procession
A driver was ticketed for reckless driving during a funeral procession travelling west on the 7600 block of Roosevelt Road on April 5 at 9:42 a.m.
Vehicles in the procession, according to the police report, were using the two westbound lanes and not allowing other vehicles to pass. When an officer placed a squad car in position to force vehicles into one lane, a car was observed with a male passenger hanging out the rear driver’s side window.
Open alcohol
On April 7, a man was observed at 12:30 a.m. at the corner of Circle Avenue and Madison Street, sitting on the parking lot ledge and holding an open glass bottle of a brown liquid, suspected to be alcohol.
When police spoke to him, he provided identification but then became angry, yelling, “This is bull****!” He was issued local ordinance violations for open alcohol and being intoxicated
When handed the citations, the man reportedly balled them up and threw them on the ground. He was informed that he could get another citation for littering and, according to the police report, he “reluctantly” took the tickets when they were handed back to him.
A man on the 7400 block of Madison Street was issued a citation for open alcohol on April 10 at 12:05 a.m. because he was on the sidewalk with a beer.
A man on the 400 block of Beloit was given a citation for open alcohol for drinking from a clear cup of alcohol in the passenger seat of a car on April 10 at 12:43 a.m.
Two men walking in the 7400 block of Madison Street with red Solo cups on April 11 at 1:26 a.m. were ticketed for possessing open containers of alcohol. They were ordered to dispose of the drinks, which they did.
CTA trains targeted again
Police were called on April 8 for defacement of two train cars during the overnight hours at 711 Desplaines Ave.
A CTA employee called police on April 11 at 4:21 a.m. after discovering graffiti on a train car at 1 Harlem Avenue.
Around 7:56 a.m. that same day, police were again called when it was discovered that two more trains had been tagged at the same location.
Graffiti on stop sign
A woman called police on April 9 at 4:08 p.m. after discovering graffiti on the stop sign on the corner of Lathrop Avenue and Fillmore Street.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, April 5-11, 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
