Police responded to an address on Des Plaines Avenue on Nov. 28 after two separate callers said a man pointed a gun at them while they were in their cars. Police located a man matching the offender’s description near Hannah Avenue and Madison Street, where they detained him. In his pocket, they found a lighter shaped like a handgun. Police reported that the man threatened them and their families several times and spoke nonsensically, so police thought he was having a mental health crisis. They contacted a social worker at Ascension Health, but the man refused social services. He was charged with aggravated assault.
Battery
Police responded to Mugsy’s Tavern on Madison Street just after midnight on Nov. 24 for a battery. A woman told police that she was slapped by an unknown man in the bar after she was arguing with the bartender. Bar staff told police that the man left through the back exit. Police found a man matching his description and told him to stop while he tried to enter a nearby apartment, which he initially ignored. Though the woman said she wanted to sign complaints against the man, when they went to the bar to ask her to identify the him, she was no longer there. Bar staff showed police video of the incident, which shows the woman in a verbal altercation with a bartender before the man slaps her twice. At the time of the police report, the man had been released pending further investigation and was not charged.
Damage to property
On Nov. 24, a dump truck driver reported to police that he went to pick up a dumpster in the 1400 block of Circle Avenue, but it fell and damaged a fence. The owner of the property said the dumpster also damaged a grill. City Wide Disposal & Recycling was contacted to arrange payment for the damaged property.
Disorderly conduct
Police responded to Scratch Public House in the early hours of Nov. 27 to address an altercation after security refused to give back an ID to a patron. According to the police report, a young man tried to enter Scratch, though he was underage. When security denied him, he tried to enter the back of the establishment but was escorted out. The young man was charged with disorderly conduct.
Aggravated assault
While on patrol Nov. 27, police saw a car driving on Roosevelt Road with tinted windows in violation of the Illinois Vehicle Code. The car also changed lanes frequently, disregarded a stop sign, and drove in circles in the Forest Park Mall parking lot. Police radioed dispatch about the reckless driver. The car went to Cardinal Wine and Spirits’ parking lot on Roosevelt Road to attempt to escape but was trapped in the parking lot by police cars. Police ordered the driver to show his hands and get out of the car, but he didn’t. One police officer used the rear of his pocket knife to break the passenger’s window to place the driver in custody. The driver revved the engine multiple times and held onto the steering wheel while police tried to remove him. After a warning, police tased the driver and took him in. The man was charged with aggravated assault, fleeing a police officer, an Illinois Vehicle Code violation, traffic sign violations, improper lane usage, and two counts of resisting an officer.
Assisting fire department
Police responded to the 900 block of Dunlop Avenue the morning of Nov. 28 for a structure fire. Police saw smoke on the second-floor balcony that was also in the adjacent bedroom and kitchen. A woman who lives at the home with her husband and mother said she woke up to a strange smell and found flames on their balcony. They extinguished the fire with water and called 911, but don’t know how the fire could’ve started. According to the police report, the fire department was unable to determine how the fire began.
Snow route violations
After over two inches of snowfall on Nov. 29, 25 cars were towed to Nobs Towing. Director of Public Works Sal Stella requested that the police department do so for cars parked on streets with posted signage so that the streets could be plowed.
These items were obtained from Forest Park Police Department reports dated Nov. 23 through Nov. 29 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.