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A 33-year-old West Side man is charged with narcotics possession after the driver of a car he was in led police on a chase through the Ashburn, Parkview and Scottsdale neighborhoods.
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| 8243 South Ashland |
Dillard Florence of the 4700 block of west Fulton is charged with misdemeanor possession of narcotics, according to police, who added that Florence is an admitted gang member.
Police said they were monitoring a gang-related funeral at the Angelus Funeral Home at 8243 South Ashland (former Sheehy Funeral Home) on Wednesday, March 6. As the funeral procession moved west at about 1:40 p.m., police said they spotted a 2000 Mercedes Benz with expired temporary license plates near 83rd and Kedzie, blocking traffic for the procession.
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| Dillard Florence, 2010 booking photo, CCDOC |
Police curbed the vehicle and asked the driver for his driver's license. He did not produce one. There were two passengers in the car: Florence and a woman, police said.
When police asked the driver to get out of the car, he reportedly put the car in gear and sped away south on Kedzie, in the northbound lanes. Police pursued and said that the driver turned at 87th Street, speeding west in the eastbound lanes, blowing stoplights at Lawndale and Pulaski/Southwest Highway. The driver reportedly continued west on 87th Street with CPD in pursuit, turning north on Kildare, then spinning around and heading back south, striking a CPD Eighth District unit.
At that point, police said they saw the right rear passenger door of the car open and a passenger fling two clear plastic bags with marijuana out onto the street. The bags were recovered by police.
The Mercedes Benz then turned back onto 87th Street and sped west, blowing the stoplight at Cicero Avenue and heading into Burbank.
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| 87th and Kildare |
CPD terminated the chase at that point. Burbank Police searching for the car found it abandoned near 83rd Place and Major.
They established a perimeter and took steps to protect local residents, especially schoolchildren. (Details of the suburban response can be found in the Oak Lawn Patch.)
Burbank Police apprehended Florence (who fit the description of the car's occupants) just east of 87th and Central. He was turned over to CPD for processing at the Eighth District.
Shortly after 5:00 p.m. at the Eighth District Station, Florence reportedly admitted guilt and said "All I wanted to do was smoke weed, that's all, when Jaymo (the driver of the Mercedes Benz) took off from y'all. I told him 'Dude! What the f~ck is you on?' and he told me that his sh~t was revoked and he ain't going back for that sh~t." Regarding his relationship with the driver, Florence reportedly said "...I knew him since I was a shorty. But I haven't seen him in a while, until the funeral."
Police are searching for the driver, described as a black man about 250 pounds, brown eyes, black braided hair, dark complexion; and for the other passenger, described as a woman with medium brown complexion and blonde hair.
The Southwest Chicago Post is attempting to ascertain if the man arrested is the same Dillard Florence who manages recording artists, including the late Johnny "Boy Da Prince" Taylor, an up-and-coming rapper killed in a West Side alley two months ago.
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An armed thug robbed the Radio Shack at 5897 South Archer at 6:38 p.m. Tuesday, March 5, making off with about $660 in cash.
The criminal entered the store moments after the manager, a 19-year-old Gage Park man, went on break and walked next door to 7-Eleven. He waved a black and silver revolver in the face of the clerk, a 19-year-old Little Village woman, saying "Give me all the f~cking money."
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| 5897 South Archer |
The offender then put the cash in a white Radio Shack bag and fled out the front door, running west.
The clerk then ran to 7-Eleven and alerted the manager.
The thug was described as a black man age 30-35, 6'3 and 170 pounds, brown eyes, short black hair, dark complexion, shaped eyebrows bushy in the center and tapered at the end, wearing a black face mask that covered the bottom half of his face, a baggy sweatshirt, jogging pants and white Nike Air Force 1 shoes.
The clerk also told police that the robber smelled of burnt marijuana and that his clothes were dry despite a snowstorm outside.
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Want to work directly with Chicago Police to prevent crime in your neighborhood? If you live in Beat 815 or 821 (see map), come to St. Bruno School (south entrance) at 7:00 p.m. Wednesday, March 6. If you live in Beat 834, come to Bogan High School at 7:00 p.m. Thursday, March 7. Hear updates on crime in your neighborhood and learn how you can work with neighbors and police to make the community safer and better for all.
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A pair of armed robbers hit the T Mobile store at 5601 South Harlem, making off with four cell phones, two tablet computers and about $1,000 cash.
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| 5601 South Harlem |
The three were herded into a bathroom before the robbers fled. Police are reviewing surveillance video.
The robbers are described as black men age 27-45, wearing hoodies and gloves.
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An armed criminal robbed the Cricket cellular store at 5133 South Cicero, making off with about $1,000 cash.
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| 5133 South Cicero |
The robber made the two lie face down on the floor and then ran out the door with the take. He jumped into an older (1990-98) red Chevy pick-up truck with silver/gold striping along the sides.
He is described as a black man age 35-40, 5'10 and 200 pounds, brown eyes, black hair, medium complexion, with facial hair and a "grey physical impairment" on his face, according to a CPD incident report. He was wearing a black hoodie, black gloves and a black mask that covered part of his face.
The store was robbed in a similar fashion back on Tuesday, July 17.
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Burglars hit two garages near 57th and Merrimac sometime between midnight and 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, March 5, apparently using garage door remote control openers stolen from the victims' vehicles that were parked on Merrimac.
The garages are next door to each other. One victim reported losing a DMX speaker system, two exercise weights and three baseball caps. The other victim, in addition to a smashed driver's-side window, lost an Illinois I-Pass, several music CDs, a power drill, a 24-pack of pop, iPod speakers, a pair of boxing gloves, and exercise weights.
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Burglars forced open the back window of an apartment near 55th and Kolmar and stole two laptop computers, a Kindle, a camera, a set of car keys and $250 cash.
The crime was discovered by the victim, a 38-year-old man, when he returned home from work at 5:00 p.m. Monday, March 4.
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A 61-year-old Clearing man told police that two armed thugs carjacked his 2005 Cadillac DeVille from his home near 62nd and Melvina.
The crime occurred at about 4:00 a.m. Sunday, March 3. The man said he was in his car, about to park it in his garage when the pair walked up, pointed a hand gun at him and ordered him (in Spanish) to get out.
The victim complied, and the criminals got in and sped away north through alley towards 62nd Street. He described the offenders as white Hispanic men age 20-25, 5'8 and 200 pounds.
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Burglars broke through the back door of a home near 64th and Karlov and stole seven watches, about 40 pieces of jewelry and a tablet computer.
The crime was discovered by the victim, a 40-year-old man, when he came home at 3:15 p.m. Sunday, March 3.
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A gang awareness seminar will be held at 6:00 p.m. Tuesday, March 19 at Hale School, 6140 South Melvina (auditorium). Sponsored by the Clearing Night Force neighborhood watch group, the CPD Eighth District CAPS Office and the CPD Gang/Tactical Unit. Learn from the experts on how to recognize gangs and gang activity and how to deal with it. Learn prevention tips by learning about how gangs recruit young people. Open to the public. Students who attend may earn service hours. For details, email ClearingNightForce812@gmail.com or call (773) 492-0812.
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Thanks Tim! A whole lot more infor than we heard this evening when the event was pretty much swept under the carpet.
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