Brookfield police continue to investigate what appears to have been a well-planned burglary of a 47th Street plumbing business overnight on July 6-7.

The owner called police at about 8:05 a.m. on July 7 after arriving at work to find that the rear chain link fence to the property had been cut from top to bottom to allow entry to the property and a broken window allowed access to the warehouse and offices.

According to the police report, an “extensive amount” of plumbing equipment was missing, including a directional boring device, jack hammers, scoping cameras and other items. The offenders also forced entry or attempted to force entry into three work vans parked on the property, stealing items from at least one of them.

Evidence at the scene led police to suspect two trucks were used to carry out the burglary, since there were two sets of tire tracks in the grass area where the trucks apparently backed up to the cut fence.

  • A resident of Brookfield who lives on DuBois Boulevard called police on July 8 to report that someone had entered his unlocked garage sometime after July 6 and removed several power tools valued at about $900. Police redacted information on where exactly along DuBois Boulevard the burglary took place.
  • North Riverside police responded to North Riverside Park Mall, 7501 Cermak Road, on July 4 at 5:20 p.m. after mall security alerted them to a black Range Rover with a broken front passenger window.

As police were processing the scene, the vehicle’s owner arrived and said the only thing missing was a makeup bag containing about $500 worth of makeup. The bag had been left on the front passenger seat.

Security video showed a white Toyota Camry pull up near the Range Rover in the upper level parking deck near Entrance 4. A man is seen getting out of the Toyota and breaking the Range Rover’s window before reaching in and grabbing the makeup bag. The Camry is then seen leaving the mall property onto 26th Street.

Attempted car theft

A Riverside man called police on the morning of July 4 to report that someone had entered his Hyundai Accent, which was parked in the village lot on Pine Avenue and possibly left unlocked, and apparently attempted to steal it.

Police reported that there were no signs of forced entry but that the steering column had been peeled. No items were missing from the car, police said.

Check washing reported

A North Riverside resident went to police on July 8 to report that someone had stolen and altered a check she’d placed in a local mailbox, cashing it in an unknown person’s name.

The victim told police he placed the check for $2,200 and made out to the IRS on June 12 in the mailbox at 26th Street and Westover Avenue. On July 5, he checked recent bank transactions and noticed the $2,200 check had been cashed, but that the “IRS” was scratched off and replaced with someone’s name.

Police continue to investigate.

Hit and run

Riverside police issued five citations to a 32-year-old Elgin woman who drove away from the scene after her 2021 Dodge collided with a 1994 Nissan while both were southbound on First Avenue near 31st Street on July 2 at about 8:15 p.m.

The impact of the crash sent the Nissan skidding across the northbound lanes of traffic and into the curb where it came to rest. The driver was unhurt but the Nissan sustained heavy passenger side damage and was rendered inoperable, police said.

Security camera video allowed police to identify the 2021 Ford and contacted the owner, who was the driver’s husband. The driver reportedly told police the pavement was wet and slippery and that when the two vehicles collided she panicked and left the area.

Teen injured in crash

An 18-year-old Riverside man was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries after the car he was in left the roadway and crashed into landscaping bricks in front of a home at the corner of Olmsted and South Delaplaine roads and then crashed into a fire hydrant before traveling across the street and crashing into a speed limit sign and a tree outside Harrington Park on July 3 at about 1:30 a.m.

A witness told police that he saw someone run away from the crash through yards. Police learned the owner of the vehicle resided elsewhere in Riverside and went there to make contact with the owner.

While attempting to do that, police observed the 18-year-old, who had blood on his left hand and an injured knee, trying to enter the residence. He reportedly told police he was the driver and sole occupant of the car at Harrington Park.

Police reported that the 18-year-old, who was cited for the crash, did not appear to be impaired. Paramedics took him to the hospital for further evaluation.

Items stolen from storage yard

Brookfield police were called to Kago Inc., 9000 31st St., on the afternoon of July 5 after the owner called to report several items stolen from the property.

Among the items missing were two pallets of concrete blocks, 26 railroad ties and one large BNSF-branded wrench.

DUI

Riverside police charged a 32-year-old Chicago man with driving under the influence of alcohol after an officer reported observing him driving erratically while southbound on Harlem Avenue on July 5 just before 6 a.m.

The driver, who told police he was on his way to work after drinking the night before, reportedly still appeared to be intoxicated and a breath test performed at the police station more than an hour after the traffic stop indicated the driver’s blood-alcohol content to be .195, which is more than twice the legal limit of .08.

In addition to DUI, the driver was cited for three traffic violations.

These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Riverside, North Riverside and Brookfield police departments, June 29-July 9, 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