A man wanted in connection with retail thefts on July 7 and July 10 at Amazon Fresh, 7201 24th St. in North Riverside, hit the store a third time on July 11 and led police on a high-speed, mid-afternoon chase down Harlem Avenue and then eastbound on I-290 before the offender was able to elude pursuing vehicles.

Police arrived at Amazon Fresh at about 3:30 p.m. after the latest report, with a witness saying the offender had gotten into a black SUV with a broken rear window. Police located that vehicle at Harlem and Cermak and began following it.

The driver accelerated away from police once past Roosevelt Road and then onto eastbound I-290 where he reportedly drove across all lanes and onto the shoulders, nearly striking other vehicles, as he attempted to elude police, who terminated the chase at Austin Boulevard. The man had reportedly stolen about $360 in merchandise from Amazon Fresh that day.

Auto theft

A North Riverside man went to police to report his car stolen after lending his white Nissan Rogue on July 10 to a friend, with instructions to return it on the morning of July 11. The friend had not shown up as of 11 a.m. on July 12 and now couldn’t be reached by phone.

Police told the man he needed to give the friend more time to get the car to him and the man agreed to return the following week if he still hadn’t heard anything.

About 15 minutes later, the man called back to say his friend had reappeared, but without the Nissan, which the friend said had been stolen, along with her cellphone, from the parking lot at the Chicagoland Motel in Lyons. The man told police he was on his way to Lyons to make a stolen auto report there.

DUI

  • Riverside police charged a 26-year-old Chicago man with driving under the influence of alcohol, aggravated speeding and possessing a concealed weapon while under the influence after a police officer stopped him for allegedly driving 90 mph while southbound on First Avenue from Waubansee Road on July 9 at about 2:15 a.m.

The officer reported that the black Ford Mustang went through the red light at Ogden Avenue and continued down First Avenue to Archer Road where the police officer was able to affect a traffic stop and order the driver out of the vehicle.

The driver appeared to be intoxicated and reportedly admitted to having drunk alcohol before getting behind the wheel. A breath test more than an hour later reportedly revealed the driver’s blood-alcohol content to be .147, which is nearly twice the legal limit of .08.

Police also reported recovering a loaded 9 mm handgun and a separate loaded ammunition magazine in the car’s center console.

He was also cited for driving on a suspended license, having no proof of insurance and running a red light. 

  • A 22-year-old Chicago woman was charged with reckless driving and driving under the influence of alcohol and cited for several traffic violations after she reportedly lost control of her black Nissan while racing with another vehicle while eastbound on Bloomingbank Road, leaving the roadway and running over a stop sign and a left turn-only sign near the Riverside Swim Club on July 9 just before 7 p.m.

The woman reportedly told police she had been at a friend’s bachelorette party and believed she was OK to drive. Her blood-alcohol content was .145, which is nearly twice the legal limit of .08.

  • North Riverside police charged a 42-year-old Maywood woman with driving under the influence of alcohol and resisting arrest after she allegedly got behind the wheel of her vehicle and started it up after being removed from Miller’s Ale House, 7515 Cermak Road, because she was causing a disturbance inside the restaurant on July 12 at about 11:40 p.m.

After police came to escort the woman from the restaurant, they reportedly warned her to call a ride share and not attempt to drive her car away. As police waited to make sure she left without the car, the woman reportedly walked to her car, got in and started it up.

An officer pulled his squad car behind the car to prevent her from leaving and removed the driver, who allegedly resisted, from behind the wheel.

  • A 26-year-old North Riverside woman was charged with five misdemeanors, including aggravated speeding, reckless driving and driving under the influence of alcohol and resisting arrest after she allegedly tried to elude police during a high-speed pursuit on Cermak Road and First Avenue on July 17 at about 2:30 a.m.

A police officer on patrol reported seeing the woman’s white Mazda northbound in the 2400 block of First Avenue traveling at 63 mph in a 35-mph zone. The woman turned right onto Cermak Road, but when the police officer tried to make a traffic stop, she allegedly made a U-turn on Cermak Road and then headed north on First Avenue at speeds of up to 75 mph, allegedly blowing one red light before coming to a stop just north of Roosevelt Road.

In addition to the misdemeanors, she was also cited for a number of traffic violations.

These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Riverside, North Riverside and Brookfield police departments, July 9-17, 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