Berwyn Police Blotter
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Baseball Alley burglary
June 9, 2007, 8:14 AM
Someone broke into the concession stand at Baseball Alley, 28th and East, and stole a 24-pack of Gatorade and a 12-pack case of MacGregor baseballs.
Car theft
June 9, 2007, 7:56 AM
Only the broken glass on the pavement showed where a tan Plymouth Voyager had been parked in the 2100 block of Scoville.
You’re not allowed to drive just because your boss hands you the keys
June 9, 2007
An officer in the 6900 block of Roosevelt saw two dump trucks, only one of which had a safety sticker. The one with the sticker had a driver with no license, as well as front and back license plates that did not match. While police spoke with the unlicensed driver, the other driver—Jose L. Carreno, 37, of Melrose Park—explained that his brother owns a concrete company and allowed unlicensed Jorge Gutierrez, 30, also of Melrose Park, to drive the truck. Carreno was cited for permitting an unauthorized person to drive. Gutierrez received tickets for improper use of registration, no safety sticker, and driving without a license.
Hit and run driver found right away
June 9, 2007, 4:10 AM
Following a hit and run accident in the 6600 block of 21st, a witness told police where to find the offending vehicle, a maroon Impala with temporary plates. Officers found the Impala with extensive damage and paint transfer consistent with the accident. Its driver, a 30-year-old woman from the 2100 block of Scoville, told police she fled because some guys were chasing her. She was cited for improper lane use and leaving the scene of an accident.
Net full of misdemeanors
June 9, 2007, midnight to 4 AM
It was an excellent fishing spot. Police set up a seatbelt safety checkpoint in the 6300 block of Roosevelt and reeled in a large number of offenders for violations ranging from excessive noise and driving without a license to pot possession, underage drinking and driving under the influence.
At 12:25 AM: Cicero resident Arnulfo Cerrillo, 30 was stopped for wearing no seatbelt. He also had two open cans of Modelo in his center console. His passenger, 20-year-old Pamela Valenzuela of Cicero, smelled of alcohol and initially gave a false name to police. Later, she said that was because she was on probation. Cerillo was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, unlawful transportation of alcohol and no seatbelt. Valenzuela was charged with obstruction, unlawful consumption of alcohol by a minor, unlawful transportation of alcohol and no seatbelt.
At 1:01 AM: Police impounded a silver Infiniti SUV for noise, ticketing driver Paul L. Jones, 29, of Bolingbrook.
At 1:10 AM: No seatbelt on the driver of a 1993 Lincoln Continental; driver Manuel Tovar, 25, of Forest Park, also failed to bother with getting a license or insurance.
At 1:21 AM: Caught: a beltless, licenseless and insuranceless 33-year-old man driving a 1998 Olds.
At 1:42 AM: No seatbelt, so cops stopped the Acura sedan driven by Damon O. Gordon, of the 1400 block of north Latrobe, Chicago. Gordon showed many signs of intoxication; when asked about that, he said he had “one beer” an hour earlier. He failed field sobriety tests and refused a breath test. Gordon was cited for DUI, driving on a suspended license, no seatbelt and unlawful transportation of alcohol—a custodial search of the Acura located a 3/4 empty bottle of Rémy Martin cognac.
At 1:49 AM: At the checkpoint, where police had set up orange traffic cones and were directing traffic, a 2006 Pontiac disregarded their police traffic direction and continued west on Roosevelt. He only traveled another 20 feet because police stood in the road and blocked him. Driver Jason Davis, 24, of Bellwood, was ticketed for failure to follow police instructions, no insurance and driving with his license suspended.
At 1:58 AM: A white Windstar was stopped because its 38-year-old driver wore no seatbelt. Francisco Lopez, of the 6400 block of south Lawler, Chicago, was asked where he was going. “Home,” he replied. Asked where he was coming from, he said “The Pour House"(a bar on Roosevelt Rd). Lopez failed field sobriety tests and refused a breath test. When told he was under arrest for DUI, he said “That’s ok”.
At 2:18 AM: What’s with all the on-board cognac? The tan minivan driven by Antonio M. Martinez, 20, of the 2800 block of north Rockwell, Chicago, was stopped when police saw a can of Modelo beer and a bottle of Hennessey cognac in it. Martinez also had no license and no seatbelt. A patdown revealed some marijuana wrapped in a piece of newspaper, so he got a $100 pot possession ticket, which he paid in full.
At 2:45 AM: A simpler stop. The unbelted driver of a black GMC Yukon, also had no license or insurance. 34-year-old Hector Avila, of the 5300 block of west 24th Place, Chicago, was identified via fingerprints.
At 2:47 AM: Another simple one. Chicagoan Jorge Rivera, 22, of Chicago, was driving a minivan without seatbelt, license or insurance.
At 3:50 AM: 48-year-old Faylin A. Baggett, of the 6100 block of Roosevelt, Oak Park, drove a Honda Civic with no seatbelt, no insurance and a driver’s license that expired 13 years ago.
Felony charges for man with fake Rx forms
June 8, 2007, 11:11 PM
A Berwyn man, 52, from the 1200 block of Elmwood, was charged with three felony counts of unlawful possession of prescription forms. The existence of the forms was discovered after the man tried to have Walgreens fill some bogus prescriptions.
Weakling thief tries to steal ornament too heavy for him
June 8, 2007, 10:41 PM
So he dropped it. The victim, a resident of the 2100 block of Clarence, was watching TV when she heard a crashing sound outside her window. She looked out and saw a man run from her yard to a light-colored pickup truck and flee northbound on Clarence. The invader had tried to steal a cement angel, but found it too heavy: the crashing sound was the angel dropping and breaking. The porch on which the angel stood was also damaged.
Two blocks, two rocks
June 8, 2007, 10:47 PM
Two residences a block apart were damaged; each had a rock thrown through a window. One was in the 1600 block of Lombard, the other in the 1800 block.
Parking lot rage
June 8, 2007, 8:44 PM
A 38-year-old Cicero woman told police that when she pulled her Durango into a parking space near Shoe Carnival at Cermak Plaza, a woman in a Dodge van yelled at her for taking that spot. The van driver then jumped out of the van, scratched the Durango with a key and drove away. The victim got her license plate number. The van was registered to a woman from the 1600 block of north Maypole, Chicago.
Chief Kushner impounds noisemaker car; day’s noise haul totals $1500
June 8, 2007
Police Chief Kushner stopped a 1999 Chevy sedan for excessive noise at 16th and East. The 29-year-old driver, a man from the 1900 block of Home, will have to pay the $500 fee to retrieve the impounded car. Other noise impound stops of the day: Jesus Quinones, 21, of Forest Park, whose loud 1992 Mercury 4-door was taken away for being audible for over 75 feet when it was pulled over at 16th and Scoville; and a Dodge Saturn heard 100 feet away in the 3500 block of Oak Park Avenue—the 30-year-old man driving it lives in the 3100 block of Euclid.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Berwyn man gets three tickets following accident
June 8, 2007, 7:24 PM
The driver of a brown 1989 Olds sedan involved in an accident in the 2600 block of Clarence told police he had no license. The 23-year-old man, who lives in the 2700 block of Wesley, was cited for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, driving without a valid license and driving an uninsured vehicle.
Cruelty charge for man who left dogs penned outside all day
June 8, 2007, 6:47 PM
Three dogs left in a kennel meant to house only one dog had barked all day, according to calls to police. The kennel was in a back yard in the 1200 block of Wenonah. Officers could see why the dogs were frantic: they had no water. Police spoke to the owner’s wife, who refused to sign the ticket, saying they were his dogs. The 61-year-old was cited for cruelty to animals. The court date for the cruelty case is Thursday, June 28, at 3 PM in the Community Room of the police department building, 6401 31st St., Berwyn.
Poor driving choices lead to pot confiscation, charges
June 8, 2007, 5:42 PM
Gang task force officers saw a blue Nissan heading south on Oak Park near 32nd. The occupants wore no seatbelts. The car was also using the parking lane to pass stopped traffic on the right. When pulled over, driver Fabian Verdin, 19, of the 4400 block of Kenilworth, Stickney, and his 18-year-old passenge Nicholas Alvarez, also of Stickney, were seen engaging in furtive movements, so both men were asked to step out of the car. A patdown of Alvarez recovered two plastic bags of marijuana. Another large plastic bag of pot was found on the rear floorboard of the Nissan. Between the big bag and the little ones, the total weight of marijuana recovered on the stop was 22.4 grams.
Non-paying tenant accuses landlord
June 8, 2007, 11:36 AM
A man living in the 3100 block of Harlem, who has not piad his rent in months, told police his landlord pushed him in the back. The landlord was charged with battery.
Like weeds, graffiti vandals thrive in heat
June 8, 2007
Gang graffiti was removed from garage doors in the 1400 block of Euclid and the 2100 block of Wenonah. Residents of one northeast Berwyn block called police to ask for extra patrols because of the warm-weather blossoming of graffiti there.