Blood left in attempted auto theft
Forest Park police investigators collected blood droplets splattered on the air-conditioning vent of a 2004 Dodge sedan, broken into overnight Oct. 11 in the 200 block of Marengo Avenue. The would-be thief shattered the passenger side window. The owner told police this was the second attempted break-in on this car. Police observed damage to the rubber trim around the passenger side window which had been broken with a pry-type tool. They also reported the steering column had been tampered with, the metal silver ring around the ignition keyhole had been pried off, and the offender had tried to start the car with a screwdriver. Damage was unknown at the time of the report. Fingerprints were also collected, to be sent to the Illinois State Police labs for analysis.
Auto burglaries
A pocket watch and an older model cellphone were removed from a vehicle in the Walmart parking lot around 6 p.m., Oct. 11.
A woman, who may have left her Honda Element unlocked, told police the car was ransacked during the day, Oct. 17, in the 800 block of Beloit. Removed were a pair of Jaybird wireless headphones, a gym bag filled with women’s clothing and an iPad. No signs of forced entry were found on the Honda.
A woman’s purse was removed through the open window of a Huyndai Santa Fe, parked in the 200 block of Lathrop between 5:15 and 5:35 p.m., Oct. 20. The purse’s owner said she forgot she had left the handbag on the car seat. Loss was estimated at more than $800.
Dodge disappears
A woman told police her 1998 Dodge Caravan was removed during the day, Oct. 15, from a parking pad behind the 200 block of Elgin. Estimated loss was not provided.
Border-jumpers ticketed in dog park
Police conducted a premise check of the Forest Bark Dog Park around noon, Oct. 12, at the intersection of Lehmer Street and Circle Avenue. They found two Oak Park women using the park without a valid dog license. They were issued a local ordinance citation.
Outstanding warrant
Police noted a woman talking on the phone while parked in the Kmart parking lot at 7600 Roosevelt Road, Oct. 12 around 1 p.m., in a 2004 Chevy Cavalier with an expired license. Running her license plate number through the LEADS computer system, the officer noted the woman matched the description of a 39-year-old Berwyn woman with an open warrant whose last name was similar to that of the registered owner of the vehicle. After being questioned, the woman said her mother was the owner of the car. She was taken into custody and brought to the Forest Park Police station, where she posted a $3,075 bond fee and was released.
Motorcyclist had DUI arrests
A police officer ran through the LEADS computer system the registration of a motorcyclist traveling near Harlem and Monroe around 7:50 p.m., Oct. 12, and discovered that it was registered to a 54-year-old Berwyn man with license revoked for multiple DUI convictions. Since the man’s appearance fit the computer mug shot of the DUI driver, the officer tried to pull up behind the bike, but the biker turned without a signal onto eastbound Monroe, a side street. The squad caught up to the biker at Maple Avenue and Madison Street in Oak Park. The driver confirmed he had several DUIs from “a long time ago” and asked for “a break.” He told police he used the motorcycle to travel to and from work and had just been arrested by Chicago police for driving with license revoked (a felony) and had just been released on $4,000 bond. He was arrested and the assistant state’s attorney approved felony aggravated driving with license revoked charges. The 2004 silver Yamaha was seized.
Speeding with booze but no license
Police clocked a Cicero man driving his 2007 Chevy Aveo northbound in the 900 block of Harlem Avenue at 50 miles per hour in a 30-mph zone around 1:45 a.m., Oct. 14. When he curbed the car, the driver was about to enter the I-290 expressway. The driver told the officer in Spanish that he had no license, but only a card issued by the Mexican consulate. The officer found a red Solo cup containing an alcoholic beverage mixed with lemonade. The man was charged with driving without a license (never issued) and driving with open alcohol.
Bikes stolen
Two mountain bikes, a grey men’s and a red women’s, were removed during the day, Oct. 14, from the 900 block of Thomas where they had been locked to a pole.
Two tires from a secured Murray bicycle were removed from a bike rack at the CTA Blue Line station, 711 Desplaines Ave. between Oct.11 and 19.
Like a bad penny
The exasperated manager of the 7-Eleven at 205 Harlem Ave. finally asked Forest Park police to arrest a vagrant 34-year-old Chicago man, Oct. 15, who appears at the convenience store “practically every day” and badgers customers for change. The police had advised the man to keep away from the property, but the manager said the panhandler would reappear soon after police had left. This time he asked to press charges. The man was charged with criminal trespass.
Family business
A 43-year-old Oak Park man and his 8-year-old son were recognized by employees of CVS at 7216 Circle Ave. as people who had previously removed items from the store. While being observed by store video surveillance, the man allegedly removed five Taster’s Choice coffee packages worth $57.45, placing them in a black suitcase and fled the store with the boy. The two began running northbound on Harlem Avenue toward the CTA Green Line platform and a store manager followed the pair while dialing 911. An Oak Park officer who happened to be on the platform stopped the father-son team, took them into custody and recovered the coffee from the suitcase. The father told police he took the coffee because he and the child were homeless and they could sell the coffee on the West Side of Chicago for $5. The man refused to sign a Miranda statement while in custody. He was charged with felony retail theft because of past convictions and also with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The boy was turned over to his grandmother.
These items were obtained from the records of the Forest Park Police Department, Oct. 10-19, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anyone named in the report has only been charged with a crime.
—Compiled by Jean Lotus
