Riverside police are reaching out to the public to help them identify a man who may be responsible for what Police Chief Thomas Weitzel calls a “continuing crime pattern” related to a residential burglary last week.
Police were called to the 700 block of Selborne Road (which backs up to the 3000 block of Harlem Avenue) on Dec. 6 at about 3 p.m. after the homeowner observed that the rear door to the house had been forced open.
Four credit cards and some jewelry were taken from the home. Footprints found outside the house indicate that the offender entered the backyard from the alley that runs parallel with Harlem Avenue. He also exited through the backyard and alley, according to police.
The stolen credit cards were used at three different locations, including the Citgo gas station on Cermak Road in North Riverside and Home Depot stores in Cicero and Broadview.
Video surveillance camera footage obtained from one of those locations shows that the man suspected of stealing the credit cards is a white male in his 40s. He is described as having a black goatee that may have been dyed, since other facial hair on his face appears to be gray. He was wearing a Budweiser hooded sweatshirt, sunglasses and a baseball cap.
The man reportedly used the credit cards to purchase a box of latex gloves and other items. Weitzel noted that such gloves are often used by those committing burglaries to avoid leaving fingerprints.
Police have released a photo of the suspect and are asking anyone with information to contact Detective Sgt. David Krull of the Riverside Police Department at 708-447-2127, ext. 284 or email him at dkrull@riverside.il.us.
