Blotter: Hopeful 'Boyfriend' Steals Backpack, Police Recover Stolen Van, and More

THURSDAY, DEC. 15

Ex Wife Commits Check Fraud 

A local man called the cops around 11:30 a.m. when he realized that his ex-wife was endorsing checks that were made out to him and depositing them into her account. The checks were reimbursements from a life insurance company, police said. They totaled $791.70. There could be up to four checks outside of that value that the victim didn't receive. 

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 14 

Woman Drives Off With Part of Gas Pump

were called to Shell Gas Station, 17101 Harlem Ave., in around 4:50 p.m., which was about the time a local woman pumped gasoline and drove away with the nozzle still in her vehicle's tank.

After she realized she did so, the woman drove back to pump No. 8 at the station, hung the detached nozzle and hose back up, and fled. A gas station clerk helped police investigate and they found a local address linked to the person who paid for the gas.

They went to the home and the woman pulled in the driveway. She told them she panicked when she drove off with the pump. Gas station staff said they didn't want to file any complaints but only wanted the woman's insurance information.  

TUESDAY, DEC. 13

Forgery

Nathel D. Webster, 23, of the 400 block of Wilshire in Park Forest, was arrested around 4 p.m. in Chicago Heights on a warrant out of the for forgery. 

Christmas Decorations Slashed 

A woman living on South Semmler Drive in Tinley Park called the cops to report that sometime between 10 p.m. and 11:30 p.m., someone slashed four inflatable Christmas decorations that were in her front lawn. The total value of the decorations was $350, according to the report. Last month, someone cut the strings to the inflatables two different times, the woman said, but she didn't report those incidents.  

Hopeful 'Boyfriend' Steals Backpack

A Devry student said that between 2:30 p.m. and 3:20 p.m., his Chicago Bears backpack was stolen from a student common area at the school located at 18624 S. West Creek Drive in Tinley Park. It had in it $200 worth of items including a calculator, music CDs and notebooks, according to the report.

Police reviewed surveillance footage of the incident, which showed the victim and a friend being watched by a man who ended up stealing the bag when the victim left it unattended for a few minutes. The female friend who was with the victim identified the thief as a fellow student. Police contacted the student, who agreed to return the bag. He said he was watching the pair because the woman is his girlfriend. The woman said she is not his girlfriend and that the two never had a dating relationship. The victim didn't sign complaints. 

Wallet Found

A resident turned in a wallet that along a walking path in the 19600 block of Edgebrook Lane in Tinley Park around 11:30 a.m. Police were unsuccessful in their attempts to contact the owner. 

Truck Stolen

Between 10:30 p.m. Dec. 12 and 7:30 a.m. Dec. 13, someone stole a 2001 Dodge Ram from a driveway in the 8000 block of Highfield Court in Tinley Park. The owner said the truck was locked and its alarm was on. The $5,800 vehicle also had on it a $3,600 7-foot long plow, the report said. It was entered into the stolen vehicle database.

Police Recover Stolen Van

An officer found a stray van in the 8100 block of Brookside Glen Drive around 6:30 a.m. and soon determined that it was a "new steal." The 1999 Dodge van had an exposed steering column and the ignition parts were lying on the vehicle floor, according to the police report. The owner, who had just reported it stolen, is from Crown Point, Ind. A nearby resident said she didn't know when the van had been parked there and hadn't seen anyone around it. 

MONDAY, DEC. 12 

Trailer Missing

The owner of a 1995 Fruehauf trailer said that between Dec. 9 and Dec. 12, someone stole the empty storage trailer from a the 7900 block of 183st Street in Tinley Park. 

SATURDAY, DEC. 10

Violating an Order of Protection

Kamal Salah, 53, of the 8600 block of Scheer Drive in Tinley Park, was arrested around 3:45 a.m. at the Tinley Park Police Department and charged with violating an order of protection. Police said that on Dec. 8, Salah sent a text message to someone he was not allowed to contact that said, "Thanks for putting me in jail you crazy b----."

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