Local Crime Roundup

Editor's note: The crime news reported by the Southwest Chicago Post---taken directly from Chicago Police Department incident reports---is not by any means an exhaustive catalogue of all crime reported in the Chicago Lawn (8th) District. For example, it typically does not include news of crimes committed in the eastern and southern sectors of the district---because the Southwest Chicago Post's coverage area is primarily the neighborhoods that border Midway Airport and secondarily because including the relatively large volume of crime news from elsewhere in the district would be a logistical challenge. We make this note to offer a little helpful perspective and remind everyone that while crime is definitely a concern in all parts of the district (as it always has been), crime remains relatively low overall in Sector 1. May all of us work together diligently to keep it that way.

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Miguel Lara

Two men and two teenage boys were arrested in connection with what police called a gang-related crime committed on the street near Pippin and Hamlin just after 1:00 a.m. Saturday, April 28.

Taken into custody were 24-year-old Miguel Lara,19-year-old Adrian Alejos and a 16-year-old boy, all of the South Lawndale neighborhood; and a 17-year-old boy from the Brighton Park neighborhood.


Lara was charged with unlawful use of a weapon. Alejos was charged with a lesser, misdemeanor crime.

A witness who called 911 said he heard gunfire and then saw muzzle flashes from a gun fired by someone in a white SUV.

Responding to the "shots fired" call, police heading south on Pulaski saw a vehicle matching the description, heading north on Pulaski, away from the scene. They wheeled around, turned on their emergency lights and curbed the SUV on Pulaski.

Upon learning that the driver had no driver's license, police ordered all four occupants out. As Miguel Lara exited the vehicle, police said they saw a spent shell casing fall out of his clothing and saw another on the seat where he had just been sitting.

Upon further investigation, police said they saw blood on Miguel Lara's hand, between his thumb and index finger---a wound compatible with those sometimes sustained when firing a hand gun. Police also reportedly found blood on the inside of the driver's-side rear door, and a blue steel, semi-automatic handgun in the door vent.

When questioned, none of the four would admit owning the gun, which was unregistered.

All four were then arrested; and their SUV was impounded by police.

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A convenience store clerk with a gun to his head was forced to empty the cash register and hand it over to a masked robber at the 7-Eleven located at 4353 West 55th Street.

At about 1:45 a.m. Friday, April 27, the 32-year-old clerk was walking out of the store's back room when he noticed a man standing at the front counter. The man then drew a hand gun and committed the crime. The clerk handed over about $300 cash from the register; but on the way out, the offender unknowingly dropped $85 on the floor. He fled the store, but the clerk could not say in which direction.

The clerk described the robber as a black man, 20-22 years old, 5'11 and 160 pounds, wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, dark jeans and a gray scarf covering his face.

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A burglar cut through a security gate, broke into a metal trailer and stole assorted tools from Kazmier Tooling, 6001 South Oak Park, at about 11:00 p.m. Saturday, April 28.

A witness who lives nearby told police he had seen a man going through the security gate and leaving with a bag in his arms. No other description was provided.

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A 53-year-old Archer Heights woman was robbed of her purse as she walked to a grocery store at 9:30 p.m. Friday, April 27.

Walking through a parking lot at 5220 South Pulaski, the woman was approached from behind by the offender, described as a 25-30-year-old black man. The offender pushed her up against a parked car, snatched her purse and ran south on Pulaski. The victim told police her purse contained personal identification and about $50 cash.

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A 24-year-old West Elsdon man was robbed of his wallet and $40 cash as he rode his bicycle down the street at 10:50 p.m. Saturday, April 28.

Riding at 5020 South Archer (near Komensky), the man was curbed by four men in a white pickup truck. The men got out, pushed the victim to the ground, searched his pockets and then rode away after robbing him. The victim described the four as white Hispanic men, all about 5'7 and 160 pounds.

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A 28-year-old gang member from the Chicago Lawn neighborhood was hospitalized early Saturday, April 28 after he was shot while riding in a car with three adult family members at 47th and Pulaski.

At about 2:45 a.m., the victim's car---a 2006 Lincoln Continental---was approached at the intersection by a maroon Lincoln Navigator SUV. Inside were four white Hispanic men about 20-23 years old, according to the victim's relatives. A passenger in the rear of the Navigator then allegedly threw a glass bottle at the victim's car; in turn, one of the victim's relatives threw a glass bottle at the Navigator.

At that point, according to the victim's relatives, one of the men in the Navigator drew a hand gun and fired at the Continental. Several bullets struck the car's exterior, and one hit the victim (who was a passenger in the front seat) in the right side of his back.

The Navigator then sped north on Pulaski to the Stevenson Expressway, where it made a left turn and headed onto the southbound entrance ramp.

The victim's relatives drove him to Mount Sinai Hospital, where they were later questioned by police.

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A 74-year-old West Lawn woman was robbed of her debit card at 10:50 a.m. Friday, April 27 at the Ford City shopping center, 7601 South Cicero.

Moments after completing a transaction at an ATM near the mall's food court, the woman was accosted from behind by a man who quickly reached over her shoulder, snatched the card away and fled. The victim described the offender as about 18-25 years old, 5'7 and wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, dark baggy jeans and red gym shoes.

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Burglars forced open an overhead door of a garage near 56th and Kolin and stole several items from the Pontiac Grand Prix parked inside, including a car stereo, an amplifier and speakers. Additionally, the burglars smashed the passenger-side windows and slashed the passenger-side tires, as well as damaged the trunk lock.

The crime was discovered by the victim, a 20-year-old man, at 10:00 a.m. Friday, April 27. He told police he believes he knows who committed the crime, but then refused to provide police with a name of the suspect.

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Burglars pried open the side door of a garage near 52nd and Kolmar and stole a circular saw, a chain saw, a pressure washer, a snow blower, a lawn trimmer, two cordless drills and about 10 assorted hand tools.

The crime was discovered by the victim, a 66-year-old man, at about 9:00 a.m. Friday, April 27.

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A 51-year-old man who left his garage unattended at 2:00 p.m. Friday, April 27 while he went to a gas station to buy gas for his lawn mower, returned 30 minutes later to his home near 78th and Springfield to find that a burglar had stolen his lawn mower and a 10-speed bicycle from the garage.

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