Police Track Stolen Phone, Arrest Suspected Robber

Detectives tracked down a stolen phone at a north side Chicago store, identified the person who sold it to the store and charged him with a robbery that took place in Evanston in April, according to police.

Mitchell J. Ratliff, 22, of the 1600 block of West Jonquil Terr. in Chicago, was charged with one count of robbery and one count of theft, both felonies, police said. 

Police believe Ratliff grabbed a Samsung Galaxy 3 from a 24-year-old Northwestern University graduate student on April 20 near the intersection of Foster Street and Sheridan Road, then started running away. When the student tried to confront Ratliff, he threatened to shoot the student, police said. 

Detectives eventually tracked the phone to a cellular store on the north side of Chicago, where they were able to identify Ratliff as the man who sold the phone to the store. The Northwestern student also identified Ratliff as the offender, based on photographs.

Police arrested Ratliff on Sunday, May 12, when he “made an admission to detectives during the investigation,” according to police.