One Good Samaritan Among a Sea of Thieves

Man Finds, Returns $700

A good samaritan went to the police department after he said he picked up more than $700 from the floor at Dunkin Donuts, 936 N. York, at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 17. He located a person who may have dropped the money, but he wanted police to verify that the victim was, in fact, the rightful owner of the money via video surveillance. The money was logged into evidence for safe keeping until the video could be retrieved. 

Commercial Burglary

Someone broke into Doti Liquors, 104 E. Fullerton, at 1:06 a.m. Sept. 30. Police said the alarm was activated due to glass breaking, north aisle motion and the perimeter entrance door being opened. The front door's deadbolt was removed and lying on the ground and the alarm panel had pry marks on it. Nothing appeared to be missing. The suspect is described as a white male in a black sweatshirt with a white circular logo, a blue or purple hat, dark gloves and a black mask.

Theft Arrests

Katherine Mather, 22, 445 N. Kensington Ave., LaGrange Park, was arrested and charged with retail theft after she allegedly stole items worth $224.18 from Kohl's, 303 Route 83, at 6:51 p.m. Sept. 19. She was released on bond.

Sierra M. Donovan-Their, 22, 725 Ashland Ave., Des Plaines, was arrested and charged with retail theft after police said she stole several cosmetic items totaling $80.47 from Kmart, 265 S. Route 83, at 2:07 p.m. Sept. 21. She attempted to exit the store with the items in her purse and set off the security alarm, police said. She was released on bond.

Three teenagers were arrested and charged with retail theft after an incident at Kmart, 265 S. Route 83, at 6:01 p.m. Sept. 21. The offenders had left the store and entered a white Ford Explorer parked in the lot. One of the offenders was found to have a knife and a razor blade that were stolen from the store. They reportedly used them to open a BB gun package. Another offender was found to have stolen beef jerkey and seven pairs of underwear. The third was seen taking a coke bottle and beef jerkey and consuming them without paying. All three were released to their parents. Two of them were 15 years old, and the third was 17.

A 17-year-old was arrested and charged with felony burglary and possession of a stolen vehicle after an incident on the 300 block of Holly Avenue at 11:16 p.m. Sept. 21. A woman said she saw the offender inside her son's black Dodge Durango. The offender fled eastbound on St. Charles Road on a bicycle and was caught by Berkeley police. He was found to be in possession of numerous coins, a digital camera and the key fob belonging to the vehicle. He allegedly told police he started the vehicle in an attempt to steal it. He reportedly got it down the driveway "before it stopped," according to the police report. The juvenile was found to be wanted out of DuPage County for failure to appear. He was taken to DuPage County Jail.

Fidel Vazquez, 22, 1030 E. Division Apt. D, Lombard, was arrested and charged with retail theft after he allegedly took items from Kmart, 265 S. Route 83, without paying at 6:40 p.m. Sept. 27. He was arrested at his home and released on bond.

Fraud

A resident of the 300 block of Washington Street told police on Sept. 23 that he and his wife had entered into a contract with a suspect for the installation of glass block windows and two sump pumps. The victims gave the suspect $1,290 in May but no work has been done. The victims have been attempting to get their money back with no luck.

A resident of the 500 block of North York told police Sept. 25 that he purchased three $500 gift cards from a seller he found on Craigslist. He was provided an 800 number to confirm the validity of the cards, and the serial numbers were verified, police said. But when the victim contacted American Express, he was told the cards were never activated and all had a zero balance.

Someone attempted to withdraw $5,500 from an account that did not belong to them at PNC Bank, 565 S. York Road, at 4 p.m. Sept. 27. The bank denied the withdrawal.

Credit Card Fraud

A resident told police someone made two fraudulent charges totaling $5,280 on his credit card on Aug. 8.

A resident of the 200 block of Indiana told police someone used her credit card on three occasions totaling $2,000 in transactions between Sept. 20 and 21.

A woman browsing at a store on the 600 block of West North Avenue had her wallet stolen between 1:30 and 4:19 p.m. Sept. 27. Her credit card was immediately used at a gas station in Chicago. Surveillance footage didn't show any suspicious activity at the store.

Theft

A purse containing credit cards was stolen from the 200 block of West Van Buren at 1 p.m. Sept. 20. The victim was at a garage sale, and she set her purse down on the curb while loading her car. After driving off without it, she realized she had left it behind and returned to retrieve it, but it was gone. 

Two male subjects were caught rifling through a silver Mercedes parked on the 700 block of South Fairview at 12:47 a.m. Sept. 21 after the homeowner returned home. When the subjects saw the owner, they fled northbound behind the garage. The vehicle was unlocked, but nothing appeared to be missing. Police set up a perimeter and attempted to track the suspects, but they got away. One was wearing jeans, a dark hoodie and baseball cap. The other was wearing dark shoes and black or gray athletic pants and a baseball hat.

Numerous pieces of jewelry were removed from a home on the 100 block of East Oneida between 8 a.m. Jan. 2 and :30 p.m. Sept. 22. The jewelry was inside jewelry boxes and in a plastic container under the bed in the guest bedroom. The victim suspects her cleaning service personnel, which she has employed for five years.

An iPhone and iPod were taken from a landscaping truck parked on the 700 block of North Howard at 10:21 a.m. Sept. 24. The victim saw the suspect look inside the vehicle while he was cutting grass. The offender was located with the items; charges were pending at the time of the police report.

A pair of leather boots worth $500 were stolen from the 200 block of East Third Street after they were delivered via UPS between 1:26 and 1:50 p.m. Sept. 25. 

A $200 laptop was taken from a vehicle parked on the 600 block of West North Avenue between 7 and 10:58 p.m. Sept. 26. A window was smashed to gain entry. Damage is estimated at $500.

A nylon briefcase containing a checkbook, iPad and wallet with credit cards and gift cards was stolen from a vehicle parked on the 600 block of West North Avenue between 6:35 and 11:24 p.m. Sept. 26.

A black women's Huffy mountain bike worth $25 was stolen from the 100 block of South Cottage Hill between 2 p.m. Sept. 26 and 9:23 a.m. Sept. 27. The bike was locked. The tires were flat and the victim was planning to donate the bike.

A wallet was stolen at Buffalo Wild Wings between 3:35 and 4:15 p.m. Sept. 27. The wallet was recovered, but $350 in cash was missing.

Dehumidifiers, fans and an infrared camera were stolen from Chicago Water and Fire, 781 N. Industrial Drive, between July 25 and 10:49 a.m. Sept. 29.

Fifteen new tires were taken from five trucks parked in the new truck lot at TransChicago, 776 N. York Road, between 5 p.m. Sept. 28 and 6 a.m. Sept. 30. Entry was gained by cutting the fence along Spangler. The offender replaced the new tires with old tires.

A man suspected of possessing stolen property was seen speaking with a pawn shop owner at York and Crestview and showing him a gold watch at 6:27 p.m. Sept. 30. Contact was made with the suspect, and it was discovered he was riding a stolen bicycle and he had pawned other items at the shop. He was released without charges pending further investigation.

The front tire of a home-built mountain bike locked at First and York was stolen between 6 and 8:30 p.m. Sept. 30. Loss is estimated at $150.

Patch reports on law enforcement activity using information provided by official agencies. Persons charged with a crime or issued a citation for violation of a local ordinance are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. If you or a family member are charged with a crime or cited for a violation and the charge or citation is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to contact karenc@patch.com and we will do follow-up reporting on the case.