Police reported they noticed a car July 22 without a rear bumper and with tinted windows, in violation of Illinois law. When police turned on their lights, they noticed the car’s driver reaching multiple times into the front and back seat, according to the police report. Police pulled over the vehicle at the intersection of Roosevelt Road and Hannah Avenue. They reported they smelled cannabis coming from the car and asked the woman driving if she had any firearms in the vehicle. She said she didn’t, officials reported. But police found a firearm inside the front passenger seat’s bottom cushion. When police asked the front seat passenger to put his hands behind his back, he swung his arm and tried to break free from the police’s grip, according to the police report. The woman driving was arrested for possession of cannabis in a passenger area of a car, plus having tinted windows and an improper bumper. The man was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful possession of firearms, possession of cannabis inside a car and resisting officers.
Hit and run
On July 19, police responded to a hit and run in the 7200 block of Madison Street. A woman driving a sedan hit a garden planter and continued driving down Madison Street. Police found her car in the 400 block of Hannah Avenue, though she was not in it, according to the report. Before police left the scene, the woman approached police and told them she was driving. She said her power steering malfunctioned, causing her to crash, and she was unable to provide proof of insurance. The woman was arrested for operating an uninsured motor vehicle, criminal damage to government property and leaving the scene with property damage.
Theft
A Dollar Tree employee told police July 20 that he saw a woman pacing the aisles before putting three candy bars in her backpack and heading for the exit. He approached her, grabbed the top backpack handle and told her she needed to return the candy bars. During their altercation, the woman hit the employee with her closed fist and bit his thumb. When the man backed away, the woman ran off down Roosevelt Road, but police canvassing the area said they couldn’t find her. The employee said he didn’t want to sign complaints against the woman but wanted medical attention for the bite, which left a minor cut, according to the police report. Dollar Tree’s manager told police that employees are told not to interact with those stealing merchandise and said they also didn’t wish to sign criminal complaints if the woman was found.
Catalytic converter theft
Police were dispatched to Circle Avenue July 21 for a report of a masked man underneath a blue Hyundai SUV with a saw. Though no one was under the vehicle when police arrived, they noticed two cut pipes, signifying a catalytic converter theft. The car’s owner told police she would sign complaints if the offender was located.
Welfare check
Police performed a welfare check July 22 at a residence on Hannah Avenue. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services called the police about the address, regarding a registered sex offender who was possibly living there with his girlfriend and her three children, ages 18, 13 and seven months old. The woman who answered the door was the children’s mother, who spoke to police through the door, then stepped outside but would not let them inside, though she said her boyfriend and children were at her mother’s house in Forest Park. She told police that her oldest daughter called DCFS because she was upset at her for kicking her out of the house. She said she’s aware of her boyfriend’s sex offender status, isn’t worried about her children’s safety, and intends to continue dating him. Police advised DCFS of their findings, and DCFS said it would follow up.
These items were obtained from Forest Park Police Department reports dated July 19 through July 22 and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Anyone named in these reports has only been charged with a crime and cases have not yet been adjudicated. We report the race of a suspect only when a serious crime has been committed, the suspect is still at large, and police have provided us with a detailed physical description of the suspect as they seek the public’s help in making an arrest.