Police Officer Witnessed Robbery in Progress; Man Arrested

A Palatine Police Officer on routine patrol at 1:55 a.m., Feb. 27 in the 1200 block of N. Rand Road confronted and arrested a man right after he had robbed a Speedway.

The officer initially noticed “ a male dressed all in black with his hands in his pockets walking from around the side of the building and enter the front of the gas station,” a written release from the Palatine Police Department stated.

The officer went to the back of the gas station and noticed a parked taxi and began questioning the driver, who told police the man asked him to park behind the station and wait.

“As the officer was still speaking with the cab driver, the suspect came running back to the cab wearing latex gloves and carrying a foam “Speedway” cup filled with U.S. currency,” the release stated. “As the officer began to question the suspect, a dispatch was broadcast for a 911 call from the “Speedway” clerk stating that he had just been robbed. “The suspect matched the description given by the clerk, and he was subsequently arrested without incident.”

Kevin Katsev, 31, of the 600 block of Westwood Court in Wheeling was arrested on charges of aggravated battery for implying the the use of a weapon while committing a robbery.

Police reported the clerk said Katsev had threatened to shoot the clerk and demanded all the money from the cash register. Katsev did not display a weapon, nor was one found, police reported.

“However, the cup containing all of the stolen money ($471) was recovered from the offender,” the report states.

Katsev was charged with Aggravated Robbery for implying the use of a weapon while committing a robbery.

He was brought for a bond hearing Feb. 27 at the Rolling Meadows Courthouse where his bond was set at $100,000. Katsev’s next court date is March 19th.