Taylor Swift Ticket Scams; Suspects Speed Away From Cops: Blotters

NEW TRIER TOWNSHIP, IL — The following information comes from the Glencoe, Kenilworth, Northfield, Wilmette and Winnetka police departments and court records as a record of police activity and incidents reported to the police. Criminal charges merely represent accusations by the state, and county prosecutors often choose to drop or reduce them. Updated information may be available from the Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court. Anyone arrested is innocent unless later proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

FACEBOOK SCAMA Park Avenue resident reported on May 18 that someone had send them a message on Facebook telling them they could get money from the government allocated for veterans. The scammer told the resident to send a $500 American Express gift card, and the residents, finding the request suspicious, blocked the scammer.

STOLEN CARSomeone stole an Infiniti that was left unlocked in a driveway in the 100 block of Harbor Street on or before May 19.

THEFT FROM VEHICLESomeone stole a front dealer plate from a vehicle on loan from AutoHaus, 1600 Frontage Road, on or before May 19.

aSWIFT TICKET SCAMA Meadow Road resident reported on May 28 that they tried to purchase tickets for an upcoming Taylor Swift concert on Craigslist but they never received tickets.

ANTISEMITIC HARASSMENTPolice were told on June 1 that someone had posted antisemitic messages on a website of the local Jewish community.

SCAM CALLA Greenleaf Avenue resident reported on June 6 that they had given a caller personally identifying information after the caller told him he would be arrested for failure to show up to jury duty. The resident contacted police after recognizing it was a scam.

JEWELRY THEFT

IDENTITY THEFTS

Five minors were arrested on May 19 outside Central School, 620 Greenwood Ave., in connection with a car reported stolen from Waukegan. Read more »

Mike Miller, 52, of the 3700 block of North Wilke Road, Arlington Heights, was arrested on May 30 on an in-state warrant following a traffic stop. He was held until he could be extradited to Lee County.

Leo Ely, 64, of the 6000 block of Keating Avenue, Chicago, was arrested on June 1 at the Glencoe Public Safety Department and charged in connection with an October 2022 burglary in the village.

THEFTSomeone stole the contents of a mailbox at the Winnetka Post Office, 512 Chestnut St., at some point prior to 1 a.m. on May 15. Read more »

CHECK FRAUD

VANDALISMSomeone spray-painted signs in the 1000 block of Sheridan Road on or before May 17.

GIFT CARD SCAMA Green Bay Road resident reported that someone purporting to be their boss had scammed them into buying $3,500 worth of gift cards and sending their numbers to the scammer.

BLACKMAILA Maple Street resident reported on May 31 that someone had threatened to post compromising photos of them on social media if they did not send money. There was no loss reported.

IDENTITY THEFTSAn Ash Street resident reported on June 2 that someone had made unauthorized transfers from a Chase Bank account for an unspecified loss greater than $5,000.

TICKET SCAMA Foxdale Avenue resident reported on June 3 that someone purporting to be their friend had asked them to send money for concert tickets. The resident said they got scammed out of at least $5,000.

BIKE THEFTS

CAR BURGLARIES

CRIMINAL DAMAGE

Jesus M. Godoy-Giron, 49, of the 300 block of Walker Avenue, Highland Park, was arrested around 10 p.m. on May 18 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol following a traffic stop in the 1700 block of Tower Road. He was also issued citations for improper lane usage, driving with a single headlight and illegal transportation of an open container of alcohol.

Ginger M. Kurth, 42, of the 900 block of Atlantic Avenue, Hoffman Estates, was arrested around 11:45 p.m. on May 19 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol following a traffic stop in the 700 block of Willow Road, She was also issued citations for driving without lights when required and improper lane usage.

Gabriele Nava Soini, 21, of the 2600 block of Iowa Street, Chicago, was arrested around 6:30 a.m. on May 27 in the 1000 block of Sheridan Road and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, possession of a controlled substance and driving with a revoked driver's license. Nava Soini, who also had active warrants, was also issued citations for improper parking on the roadway, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, illegal transportation of an open container of alcohol and unlawful possession of cannabis.

Alejandro Soria, 31, of the 18200 block of Roy Street, Lansing, was arrested around 11 p.m. on May 27 and charged with aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol, driving under the influence of alcohol with a BAC of 0.08 or greater, driving under the influence of alcohol and driving without a vlaid license. He was also issued citations for disregarding a stop sign, improper lane usage, operating an uninsured motor vehicle and illegal transportation of alcohol.

SHOPLIFTINGThree women or girls stole 24 bottles of liquor from the Mariano's, 1822 Willow Road, prior to 10 p.m. on May 18 for a loss of about $1,450.

ESCAPING POLICEAn automatic license plate reader operated by the village of Northbrook alerted police to the passing of a car with a license plate listed as being wanted in connection with a shoplifting investigation. A Northfield officer spotted the car on Sunset Ridge Road headed south to Willow Road. Another officer tried to pull the car over, but its driver fled into a dead end, pulled a U-turn and escaped after running a stop sign and red light. Police said they did not pursue the car due to its dangerous evasive actions.

THEFT FROM VEHICLESomeone stole a license plate from a car parked in the 300 block of South Happ Road between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on May 23.

SUSPICIOUS PACKAGEA resident in the 100 block of Riverside Drive reported on May 30 that a couple of packages had been delivered to their home in the name of the previous homeowner. A little while later, an unidentified woman or girl picked up those packages from their front stoop and left. Police contacted the previous homeowner, who said they had not been expecting any packages at the address. Police said officers suspect some kind of identity theft may have occurred.

CAR BURGLARIES

IDENTITY THEFTS

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Kenilworth police have yet to report any incidents or arrests during May or June.

STOLEN PARK DISTRICT VEHICLESomeone stole a Gator UTV owned by the Wilmette Park District from a maintenance shed and abandoned it near the beach at Gillson Park, 700 Michigan Ave., prior to 5:30 a.m. on May 16.

BITCOIN SCAMA Highland Avenue resident was scammed out of $16,000 after responding to a notification on a claiming that their tablet computer and bank accounts had been hacked. The resident was told to deposit $20,000 into a Bitcoin ATM to reverse the purported hack.

PUBLIC URINATIONOn May 25, someone reported that a skinny man with long, dark hair and wearing a red shirt and dark shorts urinated on a parkway in the 500 block of Park Avenue before leaving the area in an older dark-colored Honda sedan.

STOLEN CARSomeone stole a Honda minivan that was left unlocked with the keys inside on May 25 in the 900 block of Elmwood Avenue. The van was found the same day in the 1400 block of Gregory Avenue with twos flat tires.

CHECK FRAUDSomeone stole a check from the room of a resident of Mather Place, 2801 Old Glenview Road, modified it and cashed it for nearly $5,000.

STOLEN BIKES

CRIMINAL DAMAGE

CAR BURGLARIES

Marcus L. Davis, 27, of the 1600 block of West Estes Avenue, Chicago, was arrested around 3 a.m. on May 13 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol following a traffic stop at the intersection of Central Avenue and Green Bay Road. Davis, who declined to provide a breath sample, was also charged with reckless driving and ticketed for improper lane usage.

Paul M. Funovits, 49, of the 1200 block of Prairie Lawn Road, Glenview, was arrested around 12:45 a.m. on May 13 in the 3200 block of Lake Avenue and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. He was also ticketed for speeding.

Byron Auterberry, 48, of the 1200 block of North Waller Avenue, Chicago, and Michael Howard, 42, of the 900 block of North Humphrey Avenue, Oak Park, were arrested on May 14 in connection with a report they were shoplifting liquor from the Jewel-Osco at 411 Green Bay Road. Police said they stopped Auterberry, who had an active arrest warrant from DuPage County stemming from allegations of burglary and retail theft, with about $70 in stolen goods from the store. He was charged with retail theft, obstructing identification and obstructing a peace officer. Howard was stopped leaving the store with a shopping cart filled with about $600 in stolen alcohol. Police said he resisted arrest and battered an officer while being taken into custody. Howard was charged with retail theft, resisting arrest and aggravated battery to a police officer.

Brandt L. Simmons, 58, of the 5700 block of North Rockwell Street, Chicago, was arrested around 6:30 p.m. on May 15 after police were called to a report of a traffic crash with a Jeep turned on its side. The Jeep's driver was taken to the ER with an injured wrist, while Simmons, the driver of the Nissan that struck the Jeep, was taken into custody on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. It turned out his license had been revoked following a previous DUI arrest. Simmons was charged with felony aggravated DUI-alcohol, aggravated driving with a revoked license and misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol. He was also ticketed for failure to heed the right of way at an intersection and driving with expired plates.

Lorenzo Garcia, 57, of the 6600 block of Walter Adamic Lane, Plainfield, was arrested around 11:30 a.m. on May 16 after a 911 caller spotted him driving a Buick with a shredded rear tire across Lake Avenue from the Edens Plaza parking lot. He was charged with two counts of felony aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol — one for driving with a revoked license and one for previous convictions — and one count of misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol. He was also issued citations for unsafe equipment and operating an uninsured motor vehicle.

James R. Doetsch, 33, of the 1700 block of Oak Avenue, Evanston, was arrested around 12:45 a.m. on May 28 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a breath alcohol concentration of 0.13 following a traffic stop in the 1400 block of Lake Avenue. He was also issued citations for speeding and illegal transportation of an open container of alcohol.

Rosti Chura, 54, of the 900 block of Green Bay Road, Glencoe, was arrested around 3:30 a.m. on May 27 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol with a breath alcohol concentration of 0.18 — twice the legal limit for intoxication — and reckless driving. He was also issued citations for driving an uninsured motor vehicle and speeding.

David Owens, 22, of the 7300 block of North Western Avenue, Chicago, was arrested around 10:30 a.m. on June 1 and charged with two counts of criminal damage to property after police were called to the 700 block of Ridge Road for a report of someone throwing rocks at parked cars.

Earlier: $250,000 Wire Transfer Fraud; Fake Sprinkler Repairman; Grandparent Scam Thwarted But Church Group Email Scam Succeeds: New Trier Township Police Blotter

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Note: Juvenile arrests, warrant arrests and some traffic-related offenses and non-criminal incidents have not been included.