Customer attacks CTA terminal convenience store clerk with baton

A customer allegedly attacked the store clerk working at the Desplaines Convenience store on the mezzanine level of the Forest Park Blue Line CTA terminal, hitting the victim with a baton.

The incident allegedly took place on Jan. 23 at around 12:21 p.m. The victim said that the suspect was a frequent customer at the store. The victim and the suspect got into a fight on Jan. 18 at around 2 p.m. On Jan. 23, the suspect confronted the victim at the station mezzanine and threatened to kill him. The two fought, and the suspect pulled out a collapsible baton, hitting the victim 5 or 6 times as the victim raised his left arm to try to protect himself. The suspect then fled the scene, exiting through the station's north doors.

Two other Desplaines Convenience employees on the scene corroborated the victim's story. None of the employees could provide a good description of the offender. The victim had multiple red marks on his left arm where he was struck.

Forest Park police asked CTA for the security footage, but were still waiting to receive it at the time of the report. A search of the area failed to turn up the suspect.

Catalytic converter theft

A couple witnessed a thief running off with a pair of catalytic converters stolen from trucks parked at the Sync Communication fiber company truck yard, 7238 Roosevelt Rd. photographing the escape vehicle in the process.

The witness said that on Jan. 28 at around 4:50 p.m., she and her husband were driving south on Circle Avenue when they saw a young man crawling from under the truck yard fence, carrying two catalytic converters. The witnesses turned their car around to try to photograph the suspect. The suspect ran toward a black 2007 Hummer SUV of unknown model, tossing the catalytic converters in the back seat and climbing inside. Another person was in the driver's seat and the car took off, heading north on Circle Avenue. The witnesses were able to take a picture of the SUV as it fled.

Police officers were able to follow the suspects’ footprints in the snow to find the two trucks that had the catalytic converters removed. The other trucks in the yard were undamaged.

The SUV was caught on a security camera at the intersection of Roosevelt Road and 1st Avenue. The footage was good enough to get a shot of the suspect and capture the license plate, which is registered to a person in Detroit.

Rearview mirror thefts

A woman living at the 1100 block of Ferdinand Avenue had the driver's side rearview mirror stolen from her grey 2018 Kia Soul five times, all while her car was parked at her building's parking lot.

The latest theft took place overnight on Jan. 24 to 25, with the victim discovering the theft at 8 a.m. An extra watch was posted in the area.

Garage burglary

A man living on the 400 block of Hannah Avenue discovered that his garage door was open when he came home from work on Jan. 24 at 5 p.m.

The victim discovered that someone removed an older green lawn mower and a Road Gear Pro brand hitch mount bike rack. He was unable to provide the make and model of the lawn mower.

These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, Jan 23-29, 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 Igor Studenkov