Elmhurst Cat Held For Ransom? Probably Not

ELMHURST, IL – In the last few days, Elmhurst police handled cases involving a lost cat, cemetery thefts, a customer dispute, a screaming person, a crypto scam, threats, retail theft and a car burglary. Here is information from the latest Elmhurst police reports:

Lost cat

• A resident in the 200 block of North Oak Street posted flyers for their lost cat. The resident received messages from a stranger demanding money in exchange for the cat. The resident believed the offer was fraudulent.

Cemetery thefts

• Someone stole about 60 bronze gravestone vases between Jan. 8 and Feb. 4 at Mount Emblem Cemetery, 520 E. Grand Ave. An investigation is pending.

Customer dispute

• A man threatened employees after a dispute over a food order about 11 p.m. Wednesday at Portillo's, 155 S. Route 83. The man was described as white, slim, 6-foot-1 or 6-foot-2, clean-shaven, having short blond hair and wearing a black jacket.

Screaming person

• A screaming person was reported at Whole Foods, 215 S. Route 83, about 8 p.m. Wednesday. The person was given a no-trespass notice.

Crypto scam

• A resident in the 300 block of East North End Avenue told police Monday that he was deceived into investing money from his bank accounts into fraudulent cryptocurrency websites.

Threats

• An employee of Walgreens, 160 N. Robert Palmer Drive, was threatened over the phone by a customer about noon Saturday. The employee wanted the incident documented.

Retail theft

• A man stole a pair of boots about 5:30 p.m. Monday at Goodwill Store, 675 W. North Ave. The man was described as white, in his 50s to 60s, clean-shaven, and wearing dark pants, black shoes and buzzed hair.
• A man and a woman in their 30s tried to steal merchandise about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at Shoe Carnival, 195 S. Route 83. When employees confronted them, the pair dropped one of the two shoes and left.

Car burglary

• Someone entered an unlocked car and stole money at some point in the week before Tuesday in the 200 block of North Indiana Street.

Gun

• Police took possession of a gun that a former patient had left with Elmhurst Hospital's security Wednesday. The gun was placed into evidence for safekeeping.