DNA On '19 Crimes' Wine Bottle Leads Police To Burglar: Sheriff

RICH TOWNSHIP, IL — DNA from a wine bottle helped Cook County Sheriff’s Police detectives identify a suspect in a 2023 Rich Township burglary, the sheriff's office said Friday.

Sheriff’s Police were called for a reported residential burglary on Sept. 6, 2023 in the 4000 block of Blackstone Avenue in unincorporated Rich Township. The home had been ransacked, and the security system was damaged.

Sheriff’s Police Detectives were able to access the home’s security camera footage, which showed a man kick open the door to the home’s detached garage, open the garage fridge, and drink from a bottle of 19 Crimes Cali Red before putting it back in the fridge. The footage showed the man subsequently spotted the cameras and spray-painted them with paint he found in the garage.

The footage also showed the man return to the home a few days later when he entered through a sliding door and damaged security system equipment.

The Sheriff’s Police Criminalistics Unit submitted DNA samples from the wine bottle to the Northeastern Illinois Regional Crime Laboratory for analysis.

In February, sheriff’s police detectives received a Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) report from the lab showing an association between the DNA from the wine bottle and 35-year-old Jeremiah Phillips.

Phillips, who does not have a known address, was taken into custody on May 1. On May 2, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office approved felony charges of residential burglary, burglary, and criminal damage to property.

Phillips appeared Friday at the Markham Courthouse for an initial appearance hearing, where a judge ordered him released from custody pending trial.