Berwyn Police Blotter
Drugs, alcohol, DUI
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Shirtless sewer-cover flinger nabbed for heroin
April 1, 2010, 11:20 AM
An alarmed neighbor called police when a shirtless man appeared in the middle of the street in the 6500 block of W. 16th, “screaming how strong he was at the top of his lungs.” The Schwarzenegger wannabe picked up the steel curb drain cover and threw it “down the road” two or three times, until it finally fell into the sewer, leaving a gaping hole in the street a block away from Lincoln Middle School. Still screaming, Matthew J. Heinzel, 43, was reportedly dragged into his residence by a woman identified as his girlfriend, while the neighbor placed a protective board over the sewer hole. When police interviewed Heinzel, he allegedly told them he had run over the sewer grate (valued at $470 by the Department of Public Works) with his car, causing the grate to crack and fall into the hole. Polcie found no damage to his car. During the interview, police noticed “in plain view multiple syringes (24) in a garbage can with multiple baggies containing a white powdery substance.” The powder tested positive for heroin. Heinzel was charged with unlawful possession of heroin, criminal damage to property, possession of hypodermic syringes and damage to city property.
--J. LeHane
Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Graffiti / vandalism / criminal damage • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
DUI hit-and-run
March 6, 2010, 6:26 PM
Callers reported a hit-and-run collision at Home and 31st, after which the offending vehicle fled northbound on Home. Police stopped the fleeing Hyundai Accent at 29th and Kenilworth. Driver Francisco Benitez, Jr., 25, of Cicero, reportedly exhibited glassy, bloodshot eyes; he failed multiple field sobriety tests. He was arrested and charged with driving under the influence, failure to give information and leaving the scene of an accident. Police recovered an open can of Ice House beer from the Hyundai.
Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Traffic stops / accidents • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Drifting Blazer held Brillo, crack pipe
March 3, 2010, 2:28 AM
An officer noticed a Chevy Blazer, traveling southbound in the 2100 block of Maple, because it went in front of the squad car at 8 MPH, then drifted from side to side, nearly striking parked cars, before speeding all the way up to 12 MPH in a 30 MPH zone upon reaching Cermak. The plate had been reported stolen the previous day. When the SUV stopped, a man exited the driver’s seat; the officer jumped out of the squad and ordered the man to the ground. The man—Joshua A. Anderson, 35, of 320 N. Pine Ave., Chicago—reportedly had very dilated pupils and bits of Brillo pads stuck to his pant legs; he stated the vehicle belonged to his girlfriend. When asked whether he was on drugs, Anderson allegedly replied that he had “smoked cocaine all night”. Police recovered from the vehicle more steel wool pieces, a pack of Newports, and a glass crack pipe. Anderson was charged with criminal trespass to a vehicle, possession of drug paraphernalia, improper lane use and DUI.
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Monday, March 01, 2010
I know how to beat DUIs
February 21, 2010, 3:06 PM
An officer stopped a dark green Passat in the 1300 block of Harvey after seeing the car drift and nearly strike parked vehicles. The driver,Jose M. Avalos, 37, of 1422 Harvey, told the officer he was on his way home, even though his car had already passed his address by the time it was pulled over. The officer reported Avalos smelled of alcohol and had bloodshot eyes; Avalos reportedly stated he had consumed “two beers”. Avalos failed multiple field sobriety tests, after which he refused further testing, stating he “knows how to beat DUIs and has a good lawyer”. Avalos then announced he no longer understood English—the language in which he had functioned without difficulty up until that point in the incident—and stated he needed a Spanish translator. An officer was summoned to translate for him. According to the report, Avalos was “very rude” to her, stated he did not understand the Warning to Motorists, and, in Spanish, referred to her as “stupid”. Avalos was charged with improper lane use and DUI.
Drugs, alcohol, DUI • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Let’s make a deal!
February 19, 2010 12:23 AM
Police came to the 3400 block of Cuyler on calls of a group of men fighting. No men were initially found, though the snow showed signs of scuffling, and a cell phone lay on the ground. While assessing the scene, an officer was approached by a young man who said he had lost his cell phone in that area. During the ensuing discussion, dispatchers received a call that men were hiding in a black SUV at 35th and Cuyler. The Ford Explorer was registered to the 20-year-old man—a resident of the 2600 block of Harvey—who had claimed the cell phone. Inside the SUV, police found Renzo Agate, of 301 Shenstone, Riverside. Police noticed several red marks on Agate’s face, as if he had been in a fight, and asked him to step out of the vehicle. The report stated Agate was very hesitant to do so. Once he did move to exit, police could see a small clear bag of marijuana that had been concealed under Agate’s foot. A patdown of his person revealed additional packets of pot totaling 4 grams. Agate was cited for marijuana possession. The cell phone owner was cleared to leave the scene. During the ride to the police station, Agate reportedly informed officers he did not wish to discuss the fight, as it was what he termed “a family matter” but volunteered that he could share information about the cannabis, and even that he “knew where some guns were” but would only talk if police “worked” with him.
After being read his Miranda rights, Agate reportedly stated the following: “At about 9:30, I was at UN nightclub in River Grove off Des Plaines River Road. I bought three grams [of pot] off this kid named Matt,” and described for officers how much he had historically been able to purchase from the supplier. According to the report, Agate then suggested that “Realistically, if you guys give me the money, I could go grab a quarter or half a pound off him first, then later I could definitely get a full pound.”
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“Irrational, aggressive and agitated”
February 18, 2010, 7:45 PM
Callers reported seeing an agitated man yelling as he walked down Cermak. Police in the area were flagged down by a citizen who said a man had just punched out the window of a business in the 6500 block of Cermak. Officers located the man in a yard in the 2100 block of Clarence as he headed for the door to go inside; instead of stopping when police asked him to, however, the man reportedly yelled at them and went inside, slamming the door. Police saw the man’s hand was bleeding. When officers knocked at the door, the man’s parents answered and explained their son was on parole and very drunk. They let police in to see 31-year-old Efrain Nava; he was reportedly lying in bed with his hands concealed by a blanket. Police ordered him to show his hands, and described him in the report as “irrational, agressive and agitated” as well as “yelling and making odd statements”. According to the report, Nava took a swing at an officer; police were obliged to handcuff him in order to get him outside so paramedics could tend to his injured hand. Throughout the incident, the report stated, Nava was noncompliant, pulling away from police and yelling “F@%$ You!” He also kneed one officer in the groin. He was charged with criminal damage to property; battery charges were pending at the time of the report.
Assault, battery • Deceptive practice, fraud • Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Graffiti / vandalism / criminal damage • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Little bit of everything
Public intoxication at McDonald’s
January 28, 2010, 2:47 PM
Roger T. Dziadkowiec, 56, of Chicago, was expelled from McDonalds on Ridgeland and Cermak for intoxication. Police reportedly collected him on the sidewalk outside in possession of an open bottle of vodka.
Car stereo stolen
January 28, 2010, 4:11 PM
Someone broke a passenger-side window of a white Honda Civic in the 2400 block of Highland and helped himself to a Pioneer CD player.
Pry, but you can’t get in
January 28, 2010, 4:52 PM
Residents discovered pry marks on the front door of an apartment building in the 6500 block of 28th St.
Five-year-old calls 911 a bunch of times
January 29th, 2010, 8:57 AM
Police ended up breaking a window to enter a building in the 1800 block of Oak Park after a series of abandoned 911 emergency calls. When dispatchers returned the call, they heard only “heavy breathing.” A father told police his five-year-old was playing with the telephone.
Alley ordinance nets career criminal
January 29, 2010, 12:48 PM
Police observed a white Ford Econoline illegally traveling up and down the alleys near Oak Park and Cermak. “I’m just looking for wood to build a ramp. I’m a cripple,” the driver explained to police. Joseph Q. Decellis, 53, of the 1600 block of 16th St, was found to have an extensive criminal record with over 51 prior arrests for offenses involving sexual assault, burglary, weapons, larceny and dangerous drugs. He was charged with driving on a revoked license, uninsured vehicle and illegal alley traffic. His van was impounded.
Burglary attempted, abandoned
A woman in the 2100 block of Highland thought she was having a break-in when she heard a loud bang and footsteps on her back stairs. Police found no one, but the doorjamb was damaged.
“ComEd guy” scam
January 29-30, 2010, 2:43 PM; 8:06 PM,
Three elderly victims called police after a series of failed gypsy scams involving men in work-jackets masquerading as ComEd employees. In all three instances, the men – alone or in a pair—talked their way into the residence by saying electrical work was being done in the neighborhood. The scammers’ told the “customers” that they were “owed a $50 credit.” The phony employees then offered the refund immediately in cash saying, “I can give you a hundred dollar bill right now if you have $50 change.” The scams occurred in the 3800 block of Kenilworth, the 1200 block of Kenilworth and 1200 block of Oak Park. All victims were over 70 years old. The men were described as a male white 35-40 years old, medium build, with brown hair in a blue work jacket and skull cap and a heavy-set Hispanic male, with a goatee wearing a beige work coat and a dark knit cap.
New TV-free lifestyle not ok with roommate
January 29, 2010, 6:15 PM
Police were summoned for a domestic disturbance over a television in the 3600 block of Oak Park. A 50-year-old woman told her 47-year-old male roommate that her therapist had recommended that she limit the amount of TV she watched. According to police: “Because [her] therapist made such a recommendation to her, she attempted to limit her roommate’s viewing habits as well. Her attempt greatly upset [the roommate] who verbally threatened her and told her to get away before something happened.” No charges were filed.
Charity box stolen by job hopefuls
January 29, 2010, 6:37 PM
The Taco bell clerk remembered the man with the tear tattoos on his face—and his female accomplice—because they stole the plastic charity change box from the countertop in the 6900 block of Ogden. She told police the pairapplied for jobs there earlier in the week. She gave police their job applications, listing their address at a nearby hotel.
Neighbor beaten with baseball bats
January 30, 2010, 12:03 PM
Neighbors saw a man beaten by two men in ski masks in front of his home in the 1500 block of Wenonah and ran out to help. Despite the man’s requests to keep the incident quiet, the neighbors called police, who found him on his porch, bleeding from the head. The man allegedly would not allow the cops inside his home, citing dogs. When taken to MacNeal Hospital for treatment, he told police the assailants demanded the keys to his old Toyota T-100 pickup and then beat him and drove off in a newer model silver van. He allegedly told doctors he had “fallen down the stairs.”
Maintenance man fails to sell church’s stolen snow-blower
January 30, 2010
A woman at Berwyn Baptist Church called police after witnesses reported a man fitting the description of the church maintenance man walking down the 3400 block of Clinton with a large green auger-type snow blower. The LawnBoy 824e Electric Start had been removed from an unlocked storage shed at the church. Carmen Contreras, 47, of the 7100 block of Windsor, allegedly admitted to police that he had “sold the slow blower for $10 to a guy named Jose” whom he met at the nearby Connie’s restaurant. Police recovered the machine near the restaurant, where witnesses told them Jose had “left on a Pace bus.” The church did not press charges for burglary, but Contreras was charged with criminal trespass to property.
Pot in pocket
January 30, 2010, 5:15 PM
Police charged Jose Evans, 26, of the 2400 block of East Avenue in Berwyn, with alleged possession of a bag with 4.9 grams of cannabis. Evans paid a $175 fine.
DUI driver wets herself
February 1, 2010, 2:27 AM
Renee Terry, 40, of Fairbury, Ill. was charged with DUI after police allegedly saw her silver 2010 Ford Windstar veer across the yellow line on 16th St. She allegedly told police that she had been visiting her mother in the hospital and had left her drivers license at home. When she urinated in her pants during field sobriety tests, she explained that she was “nervous.” She was charged with driving with license suspended, DUI and driving with an open jug of beer in the car.
Loud car flees dangerously
February 1, 2010, 7:41 AM
Felipe Lira, 27, of Cicero, fled police after passing a squad car with radio blaring. Pursued by cop cars, he allegedly blew through stop signs at 25th St. and 61st Ct. then proceeded, “at a high rate of speed with no regard to school children walking in the area or the general public.” When stopped after speeding at more than 40 miles per hour, he allegedly told police, “I’m sorry. Did you stop me for my music?” He was charged with loud music, fleeing and attempting to elude arrest, reckless driving, speeding, and disregarding stop signs. His 2001 white Cadillac Deville was impounded.
Car radio gone
February 1, 2010
Neighbors saw three men break the window of a red 1994 Acura in the 2300 block of Lombard and take a stereo system. They allegedly told police the men fled into Cicero.
Clippin’ Critters vandalized
February 1, 2010, 7:35 AM
A picture window was shattered in a dog grooming business in the 6400 block of 34th St.
-- J. Lehane
Assault, battery • Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Gang activity • Graffiti / vandalism / criminal damage • Noise violations • Theft • Street stop • (1) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
DUI crash
January 5, 2010, 7:57 PM
Dispatchers reported a grey 2007 Pontiac struck a stoplight at the corner of Harlem and 26th and was fleeing the scene. A witness told police the offending car drove recklessly around his vehicle, cut him off, hit the light and attempted to flee, but the crash left the Pontiac undrivable. Riverside police brought back the offending driver after catching him fleeing westward on foot on 26th St. Juan R. Sustaita, 28, of Cicero, reportedly smelled of alcohol; police recovered 8.9 grams of marijuana from his coat pocket. His blood alcohol level was measured at .264, more than triple the legal threshold for driving under the influence. Police charged him with DUI, DUI over .08, damage to city property and leaving the scene of a crash.
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Monday, January 11, 2010
It’s his—no, it’s his!
January 2, 2010, 3:25 PM
Callers reported two suspicious men walking in the 3000 block of Wesley and looking into people’s yards. Police stopped Ellezer Torres, 36, Westchester, and Joseph A. Alvarez, 34, of 3002 Wesley. Both reportedly exhibited slurred, incoherent speech. Police said Alvarez had a PCP scented cigarette, as well as a vial of PCP; he was charged with possession of a controlled substance and public intoxication. Torres was also charged with public intoxication and processed for an arrest warrant out of Lake County. Police recovered the vial of PCP from Alvarez’s coat pocket. According to the report, “upon seeing the vial, both Alvarez and Torres began to say ‘This is bullsh!t” repeatedly”, then accused each other of ownership of the contraband.
Disorderly conduct • Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Southern Comfort and weed
January 1, 2010, 8:01 PM
Police approached a yellow 2010 Camaro, which was suspicious because it was parked and occupied in the MacNeal parking lot at 28th and East. The smell of burnt cannabis was evident. One car occupant—20-year-old Nicholas Nateras of Cicero—reportedly handed police a bag of pot. After a K-9 officer sniffed the vehicle, police recovered 18 grams of marijuana, both from the jacket of Nateras and from the purse of the other occupant, Pamela S. Silver of 1825 Kenilworth. Also in the vehicle was an open 10-pack of Southern Comfort 50 ML bottles, with only five bottles remaining. Drug paraphernalia was also found in the car. Nateras and Silver were cited for pot possession; Silver was also cited for transportation of open alcohol.
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Naperville man arrested for DUI
January 1, 2010, 10:47 AM
Police in the 2200 block of Harlem stopped a black Cadillac Deville for doing 61 MPH in a 35 MPH zone, weaving in and out of lanes and nearly striking another vehicle. Driver Michael T. Stepps, 33, of Naperville, was charged with DUI.
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2009 turns into 2010 accompanied by the usual antics
January 1, 2010
Open the window—the messy way
12:55 AM
Juan Delatorre, 42, of the 3700 block of Ridgeland, broke a window so he could yell at people in front of his home, police said. He was treated at MacNeal for a cut hand.
Underage drinkers on Cermak
12:51 AM
Police charged the manager and bartender of Mateo’s tavern in the 6500 block of Cermak with serving alcohol to a minor. Luis Medina, 37, of Worth, and Heather Brasher, 31, of Chicago, were charged after police arrested 19-year-old Vedran Basic of LaGrange Park for public intoxication in front of the bar. Police reported that Medina locked the door of the tavern and delayed opening it, prompting speculation that other underage drinkers fled through the back door.
Incriminating hubcap
1:57 AM
Police stopped a damaged 1997 white BMW in the 2300 block of East; the car was limping along “low to the ground, emitting sparks and smoke from the passenger front tire.” Driver Anthony Martinez of the 1200 block of Cuyler told police he did not know how the fresh damage and red paint transfer had occurred on his vehicle, nor how his passenger tire had been bent off the rim. Coincidentally, police discovered a damaged red car in the 2400 block of Ridgeland with a BMW hubcap lying nearby. The BMW was impounded. Martinez was charged with DUI, driving uninsured, leaving an accident scene and unsafe tires.
Unwanted party guest from hell
12:33 AM
Police were summoned to help a hostess remove a party guest in the 1400 block of Cuyler. The 24-year-old man, whose phone number is listed in Bellwood, was found to be intoxicated, and when an ambulance arrived, he began “punching, kicking and fighting officers in the middle of the street.” He also, “bit an officer in the right forearm with his teeth in attempt to defeat arrest.” When the man was subdued, police found two bags of cannabis on his person each containing .2 grams with the words “stay high” on each bag. One police officer sustained a back injury and another ripped his trousers and suffered abrasions on his knee. Felony battery charges are pending.
Car on the lawn
3:12 AM
Police impounded a Toyota Camry after finding it in the front yard of a house in the 3000 block of Harlem, 40 feet from a crash site where it hit a parked Nissan Altima. Driver Lynn Van Buskirk of the 400 block of East in Oak Park, reportedly told police she did not know why her vehicle was off the roadway on a lawn. She was charged with DUI and driving on the sidewalk.
--J. LeHane
Assault, battery • Disorderly conduct • Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Suspicious people, objects or events • Traffic stops / accidents • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Modelo and cocaine
November 15, 2009, 7:58 PM
In the 2600 block of Highland, an officer saw the driver of a pickup truck take a drink from a white can; approaching nearer, he could see it was a can of Modelo beer. There was no record on file for a driver’s license for Edwardo Banda, 43, of Cicero. A search of Banda’s person recovered a clear bag containing .3 grams of cocaine. He was charged with unlicensed driving, illegal transportation of open alcohol, and possession of a controlled substance.
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Friday, November 06, 2009
FEDERAL DRUG CHARGES PENDING IN SECOND DRUG RAID IN A WEEK
November 6, 2009
A cooperative effort between Berwyn police and federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents resulted in a drug raid on a Berwyn residence just days after an unusually large pot factory was uncovered in the same neighborhood. Officers descended on a residence in the 2500 block of Highland between 9 and 11 AM today and seized more than 80 pounds of marijuana, three ounces of cocaine, and a machine press of the type used to label marijuana bales before distribution. According to police, the pot was valued at betwen $50,000 and 60,000. The street value of the recovered cocaine was estimated to be between $50,000 and $75,000. Charges are still pending and the investigation is ongoing.
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Thursday, November 05, 2009
Pot-plant nursery yields millions in narcotics, guns
November 4, 2009
Marijuana plants seized in big Berwyn drug raid
Large, flourishing cannabis plants – 355 of them – were recovered by Berwyn Police and Cook County narcotics agents from three rooms in a house in the 2200 block of Ridgeland. The plants, when harvested and sold on the street, were estimated to be worth about $290,000. Also found in the house were cocaine worth $2.1 million; $61,000 worth of heroin, half a million dollars worth of MDMA(“Ecstasy”) and $660,000 worth of Vicodin. The setup was described by Berwyn tactical coordinator, Detective Roger Montoro, as a “pot factory”.
Charged with possession and possession with intent to deliver all of the above was 26-year-old Richard Medina, 2232 Ridgeland.
Berwyn police chief William Kushner called the pot-growing operation one of the most elaborate ever seen in Cook County. The multi-flat residence was equipped with many large portable air-conditioning units, fans and extra ductwork designed to control the climate for optimum growth and prevent the strong scent of fresh marijuana from being detected outside the house. Police recovered a calendar on which someone had marked precise cannabis plant-care instructions; dates were marked for fertilization and transplantation of individual plants.
Guns of various calibers—including 3 Uzis—were also recovered, including two with obliterated serial numbers. Police said they had been aware of the house since June and conducted the investigation the resulted in the bust over a period of about a week.
Deputy Berwyn police chief Joseph Drury credited the success of the operation to Berwyn’s newly reorganized tactical unit, also praising the assistance of Cook County narcotics officers whose deputy chief, Kevin Ruel, said provide “fresh faces” for similar undercover work all over the county. Drury noted now-expanded tactical unit had executed 12 search warrants and recovered 30 guns just since August.
Multi-tasking
According to Montoro, the search warrant for the bust was brought before a judge on the evening of November 2nd. That evening, Montoro, Kushner, Drury and several other police commanders held an all-Berwyn Neighborhood Watch meeting and gave a presentation on this type of investigation, even as they stayed in telephone touch with undercover officers and prepared to move in on the drug house.
Left to right: Det. Roger Montoro, Police Chief William Kushner, Berwyn Mayor Robert Lovero, Cook County Deputy Chief Kevin Ruel, and Berwyn Deputy Chief Joseph Drury, overlooking tables filled with illegal narcotics, weapons and drug packaging.
Drugs, alcohol, DUI • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink