A custodian at the Hauser Junior High/Central School campus in Riverside prevented a burglary of a teacher’s vehicle on June 9 after catching the alleged offenders in the act.
According to Riverside police, the man saw three juveniles, one of them in the vehicle, around 3 p.m. The youths were described as a 9-year-old boy from Riverside, a 9-year-old boy from Berwyn and an 11-year-old girl from Berwyn.
After marching the students to a school office, officials said that the children admitted entering “a couple of vehicles” in the school parking. The 9-year-old Berwyn boy allegedly entered the vehicles, while the other two served as lookouts, according to the police report.
Police reportedly recovered a screwdriver and allen wrenches from the 9-year-old Berwyn boy. The children also showed police the bushes in which they hid some of the personal property, including change, CDs and sunglasses, taken from the vehicles.
The youths received station adjustments and were released to the custody of their parents.
Burglary
On June 9 at 2:20 p.m., Brookfield police received a report of a residential burglary in the 3300 block of Oak Avenue. According to the report, the homeowners’ son arrived at the residence to find the west patio door smashed out and a large landscaping boulder lying on the floor. A Dell laptop computer valued at $300, which was sitting on a coffee table in front of the patio window, was missing.
Retail theft
Brookfield police slapped Chicago resident Jason E. Sanchez, 25, with a felony charge of retail theft after he reportedly stole an electric razor and electric hair trimmer from CVS Pharmacy, 8911 Ogden Ave. on June 9 just after 12:30 p.m.
According to the report, a Brookfield officer was just driving by the store when Sanchez exited and began running eastbound down Ogden Avenue. The officer followed Sanchez to the Pioneer Motel, 8835 Ogden Ave., where Sanchez reportedly tried to enter a room and, seeing police, ran to the rear of the motel and dropped the razor and hair trimmer, valued at $107.73. He was later captured in the 4100 block of Grove Avenue.
Police added that Sanchez has an extensive criminal history, including a conviction for retail theft in 2002 out of DuPage County. Sanchez also had an active arrest warrant out of Bolingbrook for driving on a suspended license. The Cook County State’s Attorney approved a felony theft charge.
DUI
Berwyn resident Pedro Francisco, 30, was charged with DUI and other offenses after he reportedly drove his vehicle into a street light on the west side of Riverside Road just before 9:30 p.m. on June 11. An officer responding to the scene reported that Francisco was attempting to turn west on Burling Road when police pulled him over. Francisco’s vehicle reportedly sustained heavy front-end damage; the gaslight pole was knocked to the ground.
Police reported that Francisco appeared to be intoxicated and gave him field sobriety tests, which he failed. At the police station, Francisco’s blood-alcohol level was reportedly .179, or over twice the legal limit.
In addition to DUI, he was cited for improper lane usage, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, damage to village property and driving on a suspended license.
Riverside police charged Chicago Ridge resident Teresa M. Brunner, 37, with DUI and other offenses after she reportedly drove her vehicle northbound on First Avenue in the southbound lanes of traffic from Ogden Avenue until police stopped her at Forest Avenue just before 2:30 a.m. on June 11.
Police reported that Brunner’s vehicle had front-end damage and a flat tire resulting, Brunner reportedly said, from hitting the curb while driving down First Avenue. After failing field sobriety tests, Brunner was arrested for DUI. During a search, police also reportedly recovered a small metal pipe used for smoking cannabis. A breath test revealed her blood-alcohol level to be .131.
In addition to DUI, she was cited for improper lane usage and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Riverside police charged Chicago resident Jerzy Walczak, 48, with DUI and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident after he reportedly drove his 1998 Ford Taurus in to the rear end of a 1995 Toyota Corolla, while northbound on near the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad trestle at 3:16 p.m. on June 5.
According to the report, Walczak was swaying and stumbling in the wake of the incident. He later reportedly failed field sobriety tests. After his arrest, a breath test revealed a blood-alcohol level of .279, over three times the legal limit.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Riverside and Brookfield police departments from June 5 through June 11 and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anyone named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. The cases have not yet been adjudicated.
?”compiled by Bob Uphues
