Berwyn Police Blotter
Deceptive practice, fraud
Sunday, February 28, 2010
“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
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Gypsy scam
July 25, 2009, 12:37 PM
An elderly woman was distracted by two women while persons unknown entered her house in the 3800 block of Grove. The 87-year-old victim heard a knock; a voice outside said “I’m your neighbor from three doors down and I’m leaving town and need you to get my mail”. The victim opened the door to a woman in her early 40s, with an olive complexion and dressed in a multicolored blouse and skirt. The victim went to fetch a pen and paper with which to write down the address and telephone number of the “neighbor” and was startled to realize the woman had followed her, uninvited, into the kitchen. The stranger requested a glass of water, but never drank it, then made a cell phone call in which she spoke in a foreign language.
Next, the victim heard her front door open and said so to the stranger. The stranger said “I didn’t hear anything” and complimented the victim on her back porch. The victim and the woman went outside and picked a cucumber. When they came back into the house, a round-faced 19-year-old woman was at the kitchen table. The stranger stated, “That’s my daughter”. The victim offered the girl a Coke, then heard the front door open yet again. When she tried to go to the door to see what was going on, the two females blocked her by standing side by side in the way. The two women left soon afterward. The victim later found her previously locked spare bedroom door had been forced open and some items had been moved.
Deceptive practice, fraud • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Friday, June 26, 2009
The old “I’m collecting donations for ICOPS” scam nearly worked
June 19, 2009, 9:40 AM
While an officer was on patrol in a marked vehicle in the 1300 block of Harlem, a man walked up to him and tried to present him with a check for $100, made out to the city of Berwyn. The note on the check said ‘Donation: ICOPS”. The man told the officer, “Here’s the donation you guys asked for. Can you bring it in so the sergeant doesn’t have to come out?”
The officer explained to the man that nobody in the Berwyn police department is soliciting donations. The man told the officer someone called him on June 17, claiming to be a Berwyn officer, and asking for money for kids with disabilities via something called “ICOPs”; the requested donation amounts were $1,000 or $500. The man said he could donate $100. The caller, he said, told him not to take the check to City Hall, but allegedly said, “I’m a sergeant and I will come by to pick it up on the 19th”.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Miscellaneous • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Fake IDs paved way for gun-toting gig
April 13, 2009, 1:57 PM
Police approached a truck at Oak Park and 26th, in which the driver was seen slumped behind the wheel; they were unable to wake him and had a towing service open the door so officers could put the vehicle into parking gear—the driver had his foot on the brake, and the truck was in drive when found.
Inside the vehicle, police found a case which held a set of handcuffs, engraved “DuPage County Sheriff”. The driver produced an Illinois license with the name “Adrian A. Irizary-Morales”. A search of the name in the state crime database revealed a suspended driver’s license and an arrest warrant. The driver told police he worked for a currency exchange, transporting cash.
An inventory of the vehicle recovered the following items: an FOID card; a badge with the state of Illinois seal on it; a black expandable baton; an ammunition clip containing five live .380 rounds in the glove box; and a Bersa .380 semiautomatic handgun, found under the center console within reach of the driver.
Additional research revealed that the name on the license was associated with an alias; credit cards in the name of Hector Monroy were found in the driver’s wallet. The driver reportedly attempted to explain the handcuffs to police by telling them his brother worked for the DuPage sheriff, but a call to the brother showed this to be untrue.
The driver’s fingerprints revealed he was in fact Hector P. Monroy, 26, of the 3300 block of Madison, Brookfield. Monroy allegedly told police he purchased the fraudulent IDs in order to work in Illinois. Monroy was charged with felony aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, possession of a fictitious ID, possession of a fictitious driver’s license and providing false information on an application for a firearm owner’s ID card (FOID). He was also processed for two outstanding arrest warrants.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • Weapons-related • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Got a fake license? Felony
March 11, 2009, 7:47 AM
An officer stopped a gold Ford Taurus after seeing it cut through the alley south of Cermak between Home and Clinton—an alley clearly marked “No Thru Traffic”. The car’s windows were all fogged up and difficult to see through. The driver told police his license was “at home” and verbally identified himself as “Federico Frias”, age 20, of 2647 East. The ID he was able to present was a soccer ID from something called “Chitown Futbol”. A check of the name showed no record on file. Police arrested the man and found a wallet in the car. Inside the wallet was a fake Illinois driver’s license, with the driver’s picture and the name “Federico Zavala Frias”.
The driver admitted to police his real name was “Federico Zavala” but said he uses the other one also. He told police he has a cousin who has a pal who makes fake IDs but would not say where. Zavala was charged with felony possession of a fraudulent driver’s license; disobeying a traffic sign, obstructed windshield, and driving without a license.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • Traffic stops / accidents • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Saturday, March 07, 2009
“Mexican lottery” scam works its brujeria once more
February 27, 2009
A 61-year-old woman (described as “elderly” in the police report) told officers she went shopping at Marshall’s, Cermak Plaza, at 2 PM, where she was approached by a woman of similar age. The stranger asked the victim if she “knew of someone who helped with temporary work”. A second woman, described as in her 30s, spoke up, stating she knew such a person. Somehow, this three-way conversation led to the victim going, of her own free will, to a grey Ford Windstar with the two strangers, who told her they had a winning $350,000 lottery ticket. They promised the victim $25,000 if she would just provide them with $10,000 cash for “a deposit”. The strangers drove the woman to Chase Bank on Cermak, then to Harris Bank on Cermak. At each bank, the victim willingly withdrew $5,000 cash, which she handed over to the two strangers. In exchange, the strangers handed her a sealed white envelope, then dropped her off back in Cermak Plaza.
Inside the envelope was nothing but shredded newspaper. The first offender was described as a female Hispanic, around 60, 5 feet tall and 180 lbs, brown hair and eyes, wearing a grey knit hat and a brown 3/4 length coat. The second offender was described as a female Hispanic around age 35, 5’4” and 160 lbs, brown hair and eyes, wearing a waist-length black coat, blue jeans, and claiming to be named “Patricia”.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • Theft • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Elderly woman deceived by “clean-cut” phoney
February 4, 2009, 3:16 PM
A 92-year-old woman in the 2800 block of Wesley told police a man rang her bell. The stranger said he was “from the Water Department”. When the woman asked to see some ID, he said he left it in his truck. She let him in anyway. The man tapped on her kitchen faucet with a spoon and told the victim her water was “contaminated”. After about 15 minutes inside the house, he told her she should boil her water before using, and left the scene.
Later, the woman grew suspicious and found her bedroom dresser drawers had been rifled through; $20 was missing. She described the offender as a male white, 5’9” and thin, wearing a navy blue jacket and pants. She characterized him as “clean-cut” and said she could identify him if he is caught.
Deceptive practice, fraud • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Friday, December 05, 2008
Phony funds not accepted for sliders
November 26, 2008, 11:03 AM
The assistant manager of White Castle, 7155 Ogden, told police a man had tried to pass a counterfeit $50 bill at the restaurant the previous afternoon. The poorly-made fake—which appeared to be two photocopies glued together—was not accepted, and the man left in a red Mustang convertible, Illinois plate XS9074. The phony bill and the surveillance video were held for the U.S. Secret Service. The offender was a male white, around age 20.
Deceptive practice, fraud • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
But was he done making prank phone calls?
November 25, 2008, 2:29 PM
An elderly woman from the 2100 block of Wesley told police she received a telephone call from a man who told her she needed to unlock her back door so he could come in and read her electric meter. The woman instead called her daughter, who called Com Ed. Com Ed advised the women that they do not call people and tell them to unlock their doors; furthermore, electric meters are on the outsides of houses, and the victim’s meter had just been read three days earlier. Com Ed then advised the women to call police.
Just before police arrived, the victim said, she received another call from the man, who asked whether she had unlocked the door yet because he was two blocks away. The callcame from a Nextel phone whose number began (708)243 -. The victim called the number back and spoke to a male who said he was “Jason”. “Jason” told the victim he was done checking meters and did not need to come to her house after all.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Woman’s credit card used in Aurora, sans permission
November 21, 2008, 3:22 PM
A 36-year-old woman from the 3700 block of Grove reported her discovery that a stranger used her Mastercard the previous day. The offender made purchases totaling $400 at the Meijer store in Aurora. The victim had not lent out the card.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • Theft • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Nowhere to run: ad payment yields too few ads
November 21, 2008, 12:03 PM
A Cicero woman who works in a medical office in the 2200 block of Oak Park came to the police department to report a deceptive practice. She said her medical office placed an ad, intended to run for four months, in the “Beacon-Gazette” newspaper, 3100 Oak Park. However, the ad ran only one month. The ad, she said, cost $250. The victim said she repeatedly attempted to reach the Beacon-Gazette, but never received an answer as to why the ad did not run. At one point, she told police, she spoke to the publisher, Steve Iwaniec. According to the victim, Iwaniec laughed at her and stated that they were going out of business and he could do as he pleased.
Deceptive practice, fraud • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Estafa de loteria, todo un excito!
October 10, 2008, 2:41 PM
Via a translator, a woman told police she was deceived by a pair of con artists. The 59-year-old woman, a resident of the 1500 block of Gunderson, said she met two women—she said one was Mexican and the other Salvadoran—who enticed her into pooling her money with them in order to claim a “lottery prize”. The woman gave her a phone number to call; she made the call and the woman who answered “verified” the winning prize. The victim then went to her bank in the 6300 block of Cermak, withdrew $4,000 cash and handed it over to her new amigas. The pair chatted with her until they reached the post office, at which time they urged her to go inside and buy stamps. The victim went into the post office alone. When she came back out, the women, the money and the imaginary loteria prize were all gone.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Memorable incidents • Suspicious people, objects or events • (2) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
“Water Department” scam enables stranger to ransack victim’s bedroom
September 10, 2008, 11:29 AM
An elderly man reported that a strange man came to his front door, claiming he was from the “Berwyn Water Department” and needed to check the victim’s water pressure. The stranger told the victim to turn on the water in both the kitchen and the basement. As he and the victim went to to the basement, the stranger continually talked on a two-way radio. After the man left, declaring the water pressure “fine”, the victim checked his house and found an upstairs bedroom ransacked.
The offender was described as a male white or Hispanic, 5’10” to 6’, around 240 lbs, wearing tan pants, a multicolor floral shirt and a black baseball cap.
Burglary • Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Monday, August 25, 2008
Check written on closed account used to pay for auto repair
August 19, 2008, 4:27 PM
The owners of an auto-repair business at 16th and Ridgeland told police a man paid for repairs to his 1998 Buick with a personal check for more than $600, but the checked bounced because the account on which it drew was closed. The victims were unable to reach the offender, who had provided a Missouri driver’s license and a check with a local phone number. Police found an Illinois driver’s license image in the name of the alleged offender, Elliott L. Henderson, Jr., 24, of the 2700 block of west Warren, Chicago; the victims positively identified the man in the picture as the offender and signed complaints of deceptive practice against him.
Deceptive practice, fraud • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Landlady: tenants not only deadbeats, but thieves too
June 13, 2008, 6 PM
A landlady alerted police to a problem with the second-floor tenants in a building in the 3700 block of East. After the electricity was turned off to their flat because they did not pay their bills, she said, the upstairs tenants simply ran extension cords out to an exterior electrical outlet in order to power items in the upper apartment—meaning they are stealing electricity billed to the downstairs tenants.
Deceptive practice, fraud • Suspicious people, objects or events • Theft • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink