'Crime Spree:' Lotto Tickets Stolen From 7-Eleven; Wheaton Man Charged

WHEATON, IL — A Wheaton man linked to several lottery ticket thefts is accused of stealing more than $700 worth of scratch-off lottery tickets from a 7-Eleven in Elmhurst.

Yonas Beyene, 37, of the 2000 block of Roosevelt Road, was charged with felony counts of burglary, retail theft and continuing financial crimes enterprise in connection with the Dec. 22 incident. Police say there were three warrants out for Beyene's arrest in connection to local reports of stolen lottery tickets when he was taken into custody.

Police were called to the 7-Eleven at 155 E. First St. around 11:15 p.m. on Dec. 21 for a report that lottery tickets had been stolen. An employee told police that Beyene came into the story saying he needed to charge his phone and warm up while he waited for someone to give him a ride.

According to police, the employee stepped away from the register around 1:45 a.m. Beyene is accused of reaching over the counter to remove $730 worth of instant lottery tickets before fleeing the scene.

Prosecutors say Beyene is also suspected of stealing lottery tickets in Lombard, Oakbrook Terrace, Addison, Hanover Park, Winfield and Carol Stream. Beyene was arrested Jan. 3 shortly after police spotted him leaving a hotel in Villa Park.

“It is alleged that for the past several months, Mr. Beyene entered multiple convenience stores throughout the Chicagoland area and then stole lottery tickets once given the opportunity,” DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a news release.

Berlin added, “In this case, it is alleged that Mr. Beyene first befriended an unsuspecting store clerk and then stole lottery tickets when the clerk briefly went to a back cooler. This type of chronic victimization of our retail establishments will not be tolerated in DuPage County. I thank the Elmhurst Police Department for their efforts on this case, as well as the multiple agencies in multiple jurisdictions and counties for their assistance."

Beyene is being held at DuPage County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 27.