A 64-year-old man went to Brookfield police on Feb. 7 to report that someone he had sent nudes picture of himself via WhatsApp was blackmailing him.

The man told police that he sent the message to someone he believed to be a woman on Feb. 6 The following morning that party demanded money, threatened to send the nude photos to the man’s family, friends and employer if he didn’t pay.

Despite sending $150 in Visa gift cards to the other party, he told police, there were more demands for money. Despite deleting the app from his phone, he said, he continued to receive messages from someone claiming to be an FBI agent with demands for money.

Police informed the man that the FBI does not solicit money via gift cards from citizens and that he should cease contact with the other party. Police tried to contact the other party multiple time, without success.

Credit card fraud

A woman whose vehicle had been burglarized recently in south suburban Lansing contacted North Riverside police on Feb. 6 to report that credit cards taken in that burglary had been used to make purchases at stores in the village that morning just after 11 a.m.

According to police, the offender(s) used five different credit cards to make more than $6,000 in fraudulent purchases at Faze 1, Kids Footlocker, Champs Sports, Footlocker, Journey Kids, Finish Line, Piercing Pagoda and Underground by Journeys at the North Riverside Park Mall as well as Best Buy and T-Mobile.

One of the cards was also used possibly to purchase fuel at the BP gas station on Madison Street in Oak Park. The victim said that an employee at one of the locations where purchases were made described the offender as a person wearing a construction vest.

The vehicle break-in in Lansing occurred at a construction job site, according to the victim.

TP bandits strike, again

Riverside’s public works director called police on Feb. 9 to report the latest in a series of thefts of toilet paper from the downtown Metra station, 90 Bloomingbank Road.

According to the police report, toilet paper “has continually been stolen” from the train station and that the latest incident occurred between 11:50 a.m. on Feb. 7 and 1 p.m. on Feb. 8.

Police examined security video from the train station and observed many people entering and exiting the restroom at the train station, but they weren’t able to single out any suspects.

Mall kiosk burglarized

An employee of the Shoe MGK kiosk at the North Riverside Park Mall, 7501 Cermak Road, called police on the morning of Feb. 8 to report that about $370 in merchandise had been stolen sometime after he’d closed up the business the previous evening.

According to the police report, the employee closed down the kiosk and took an inventory of the merchandise around 7:15 p.m. on Feb. 7. Security camera video reportedly showed two men tampering with the kiosk at around 11:53 p.m., removing multiple items and exiting the food court doors with items in hand.

It appeared the men had left the movie theater with two women who were not involved in the theft, according to police. The offenders entered two different vehicles in the parking lot, a red sedan and a silver Jeep Cherokee, which were both last seen headed east on Cermak Road.

Criminal damage

A resident of the 4400 block of Raymond Avenue, Brookfield, called police on Feb. 8 to report that someone had thrown a rock at her living room window, shattering it, around 4:45 p.m.

The victim told police that about 10 minutes earlier someone had thrown a rock at the glass front door, but it was not damaged. About three minutes later, another rock struck the living room window, breaking it.

DUI

  • North Riverside police charged a 36-year-old Chicago man with driving under the influence of alcohol, aggravated speeding and obstructing a police officer after being pulled over just after 12:30 a.m. on Feb. 13 for allegedly driving his tan Ford at 65 mph in a 35 mph zone while eastbound on Cermak Road from Desplaines Avenue. 

The driver reportedly appeared intoxicated and told police he was driving home from a Super Bowl party. After failing field sobriety tests and being arrested, the man reportedly became combative and uncooperative. He was also cited for having no proof of vehicle insurance.

  • A 43-year-old Valparaiso, Indiana, woman who was charged with DUI late on Feb. 10 had a blood-alcohol content of .183, which is more than twice the legal limit of .08, North Riverside police reported.

An officer on patrol just after 11:30 p.m. reported seeing a white Jeep with no headlights or taillights illuminated traveling at 64 mph in a 35-mph zone while northbound on Harlem Avenue from Riverside Drive.

The Jeep then turned east on 26th Street, reportedly continuing east despite driving in a left turn lane at Riverside Drive and driving into the westbound left-turn lane before pulling over.

Police reported the driver was wanted on a warrant out of Indiana for assault. They also reported recovering a loaded .38-caliber pistol from a purse on the passenger side floorboard. She reportedly did not have an Illinois firearm owner’s ID.

In addition to DUI, she was charged with aggravated speeding and unlawful use of a weapon.

These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Riverside, North Riverside and Brookfield police departments, Feb. 6-12, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anybody named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. These cases have not been adjudicated.

— Compiled by Bob Uphues