Just before 5 p.m. on Nov. 15, a man wearing all black, including a face mask, came into Subway and ordered a turkey sandwich, according to police. As the employee put the sandwich in a bag, the man pulled out a gun from his waistband and aimed it at the worker. He asked for all of the store’s money. The employee gave him $1,044, which the man put in the sandwich bag and ran away, according to the police report.
Through surveillance footage, police saw the man get in a black GMC SUV, which they entered in their system as a felony vehicle. According to Deputy Chief of Police Christopher Chin, the vehicle was later stopped by state police, and a man and woman in the car were arrested. They were then brought back to the Forest Park Police Department for investigation and were released. Forest Park detectives are still investigating the case, and forensics is processing a firearm found in the car.
On the same day around 8 p.m., a man robbed two men in the Chipotle parking lot. Police said the two men, despite a language barrier, told them that a man wearing a white shirt and face mask pointed a gun at them and took their wallets, which each had about $400 in them. The man fled across Madison Street, according to street surveillance cameras, and is still at large.
Retail theft
Police were dispatched to Walmart Nov. 13 for a retail theft. A woman was caught on camera hiding items in her baby’s diaper bag, then passed the store’s last point of purchase, officials said. She tried to steal more than $290 of diapers, baby formula and other infant products because, she told police, they were too expensive. She was arrested for one count of retail theft.
Identity theft
A man living on Beloit Avenue came into the police station Nov. 13 to report an identity theft. He told police that, on Nov. 9, he got multiple emails from Verizon about his newly opened account, though he never opened one, and later got a $140 invoice from Verizon. When he called a representative, he was told someone opened an account in his name and to file a police report. The man said he hasn’t seen fraudulent activity on his bank accounts or cards and will sign complaints if the offender is located.
Assault
On Nov. 15, police were dispatched to the 7700 block of Roosevelt Road. Police entered the 7-Eleven, where a man told them he was sitting in his car when another man approached and asked for a lighter. When he told him he didn’t have one, the man became irate, according to the police report. The suspect got into his car, and the victim followed before the suspect tried to hit him with his car. The victim said he would press charges if the man was located. 7-Eleven employees said the man also asked around the store for a lighter and became irate when no one could provide one.
Unlawful possession of firearms
While on patrol Nov. 16, police pulled over a vehicle that was traveling down the 7700 block of Roosevelt Road at a high speed and switching lanes without a signal. Police smelled cannabis and saw an open bottle of tequila in the back seat. A vehicle search yielded cannabis and two handguns, one of which was later found to be stolen. The driver was arrested for one count of speeding and one count of failure to signal. The passenger, who is also the car’s owner, was charged with unlawful possession of firearms, possession of cannabis outside its approved container, and illegal transportation of alcohol.
These items were obtained from Forest Park Police Department reports dated Nov. 12 through Nov. 16 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.
