Online Blackmail Threats; Thieves Intercept Checks: Blotters

Editor's Note: One or more names in this report have been redacted in light of additional documentation provided regarding this case.

NEW TRIER TOWNSHIP, IL — The following information comes from the Glencoe, Kenilworth, Northfield, Wilmette and Winnetka police departments and court records as a record of police activity and incidents reported to the police. Criminal charges merely represent accusations by the state, and county prosecutors often choose to drop or reduce them. Updated information may be available from the Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court. Anyone arrested is innocent unless later proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

GLENCOE

INCIDENTS

A Madison Avenue resident reported on the afternoon of Feb. 3 that she received two credit cards in the mail for which she had never applied. The resident contacted the credit card companies to close the account.

ATTEMPTED BURGLARY
An officer on patrol in the central business district noticed a car parked in the intersection near Parkway Drugs in the 300 block of Park Avenue. The driver of the other vehicle fled before the officer could make contact.

RETAIL THEFT
Someone stole a bottle of Macallan scotch worth $95 from the Binny's, 85 Green Bay Road, at some point prior to 8 p.m. on Feb. 8.

FRAUD ATTEMPT
A Woodlawn Avenue resident reported they had listed a couch for sale on Facebook marketplace and received a message that they would need to send a couple hundred dollars to "verify" a Zelle account. The resident recognized the request as a fraud attempt.

ARREST/CITATIONS

Dominick Wasso, 19, of the 3800 block of South Rockwell Street, Chicago, was arrested around 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 1 at the DuPage County Sheriff's Office and charged with residential burglary and possession of burglary tools. Read more...

Shannon Stevenson, 34, of the 1400 block of Club Drive, Glendale Heights, was arrested around 9 p.m. on Feb. 3 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and driving under the influence of alcohol with a breath alcohol concentration of 0.08 or greater after police pulled her over for running a stop sign at the intersection of Harbor and Linden streets.

WINNETKA

INCIDENTS

BLACKMAIL
A Willow Road resident reported that someone had, between 1:34 and 3:30 a.m. on Jan. 31, threatened to send compromising photos to social media contacts if the resident did not provide money to their unidentified harasser.

STOLEN CAR
Someone took car keys from the unlocked Fitness Warehouse business at 948 Green Bay Road and stole a 2014 Ford Transit from the alley between 5 p.m. Feb. 6 and 7 a.m. Feb. 7. The van was found in Chicago later that day.

THEFT
Someone stole Apple AirPods from a classroom at New Trier High School, 385 Winnetka Ave., between 7 and 10 a.m. on Jan. 31 for a loss of $150, police were told on the morning of Feb. 10.

SHOPLIFTING

• Someone stole multiple bottles of liquor worth about $387 from the Grand Food Center, 606 Green Bay Road, around 6 p.m. on Jan. 28. Police were notified on the afternoon of Feb. 2.
• An employee at the Walgreens, 925 Green Bay Road, reported that someone stole medicine and alcohol worth about $860 between 2:17 and 2:26 p.m. on Feb. 9.

CHECK FRAUD

• A Pine Street resident reported on Feb. 1 that someone had intercepted a previously mailed check and cashed it between Jan. 14 and Jan. 24 for a loss of $1,000.
• A Lincoln Avenue resident reported on Feb. 3 that someone had altered a previously mailed check for a loss of $2,500.
• Someone intercepted a check in the mail between Jan. 21 and Feb. 1 from the Winnetka Post Office, 512 Chestnut St., and cashed it for a loss of an unspecified amount greater than $5,000.

IDENTITY THEFTS

• A Cherry Street resident reported on Jan. 30 that someone had used their identity to set up an eBay account and sell items at some point during the prior months.
• A Lincoln Avenue resident reported on Feb. 1 that someone had withdrawn thousands of dollars from their bank account without authorization earlier that afternoon.
• A Green Bay Road resident reported on Feb. 8 that someone had used their identity to apply for a car loan online.
• A Green Bay Road resident reported on Feb. 9 that someone had used their identity to apply for personal loans on Jan. 29.
• A Warwick Road resident reported on Feb. 11 that someone had used their identity to make an unknown amount of unauthorized purchases using their Chase Visa credit card.

PACKAGE THEFTS

• Someone stole packages worth $300 that had been delivered to the porch of a home in the 600 block of Garland Avenue between 12:30 and 1 p.m. on Feb. 8.
• Between 12:35 and 12:50 p.m. on Feb. 8, someone stole packages worth $200 from the porch of two other homes in the 600 block of Garland Avenue.
• Clothes purchased online worth $80 were never delivered to a home in the 300 block of Birch Street between Dec. 22 and Feb. 9, police were told.

ARRESTS/CITATIONS

Alexander J. Rietz, 20, of the 700 block of North Pioneer Road, Waukegan, was arrested around 12:15 a.m. at the Winnetka Police Department and charged with domestic battery following an investigation of a reported battery.

NORTHFIELD

INCIDENTS

CHECK FRAUD

• A Northfield Square resident reported on Feb. 7 that someone had intercepted a check sent about two weeks prior and cashed it fraudulently for about $1,700.
• A Willowview Terrace resident reported on Feb. 7 that someone had intercepted and altered a check sent a couple weeks earlier and cashed it fraudulently for about $10,000.

SCAMS

• A Jeffrey Street resident reported on the evening of Feb. 7 that they had gotten a call from a person claiming to be from Amazon security and another from a person claiming to be an investigator from the Federal Trade Commission. The callers asked the resident for personal information and suggested they go to a nearby Bitcoin ATM for "registration." After becoming suspicious, the resident contacted Northfield police, who notified them that they were being scammed.
• A South Happ Road resident reported on Feb. 11 that someone had sent them several suspicious text messages from an unknown number claiming to have the resident's personal identifying information and claiming "someone" had paid the scammer $15,000 to kill the resident. The resident came to the police station for advice and was informed that they had been targeted by a common scam.

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KENILWORTH

INCIDENTS

IDENTITY THEFT
On Feb. 7, a Melrose Avenue resident reported that someone had used their identity to try to establish electric service at a home in Houston, Texas, on Jan. 24.

WILMETTE

INCIDENTS

CHECK FRAUD
A Birchwood Avenue resident reported on Jan. 30 that someone had drafted a check against their account and cashed it for an unspecified loss. Someone attempted a second transaction but it was halted by the resident's bank.

COMMERCIAL BURGLARY
Around 4 a.m. on Feb. 3, police were dispatched to a burglary in progress at the Wilmette Food Mart, 531 Green Bay Road. The suspects fled the scene upon officers' arrival. Police gave chase but called off the pursuit for safety reasons. An unspecified amount of lottery tickets, alcohol and cigarettes were reported stolen.

CAR BURGLARY
Someone burglarized an unlocked car in the 200 block of Wood Court on or before Feb. 4, rummaging through its interior without stealing anything.

HOME BURGLARY
Someone stole jewelry and cash from a home in the 2300 block of Elmwood Avenue at some point on Feb. 6 when they were able to enter through an unlocked front door.

MAIL THEFT
Someone stole mail from the Wilmette Bike Shop, 605 Green Bay Road, on Feb. 6.

IDENTITY THEFTS

• A Lawndale Avenue resident reported on Feb. 6 that someone had used their identity to obtain a fraudulent loan.
• A County Lane resident reported on Feb. 8 that someone had used their identity to open a fraudulent line of credit.

STOLEN CARS

• Someone stole a Dodge SUV from the 1100 block of Greenleaf Avenue after it was left unlocked with the key inside prior to 8 a.m. on Feb. 9. Around 8:45 a.m. on Feb. 9, a Wilmette police officer found the SUV abandoned near the intersection of Jackson Avenue and Foster Street in Evanston.
• Someone stole a Toyota SUV from in front of a home in the 1200 block of Gregory Avenue on or before Feb. 8. A burglar got inside a second car in front of the home, but nothing was taken from inside.

ARRESTS/CITATIONS

A 14-year-old boy was arrested on Feb. 3 and petitioned delinquent in juvenile court on a charge of criminal trespass to vehicle after officers dispatched to a car burglary in progress found he had burglarized a Toyota SUV at Edens Plaza, 3232 Lake Ave.

Nalleli Quintero, 36, of the 1400 block of Grove Avenue, North Chicago, was arrested around 5 a.m. on Feb. 6 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol after police were dispatched to a report of a motorist passed out at the window of the drive-thru at the Starbucks, 3520 Lake Ave.

Nathan S. Cowell, 20, of the 1600 block of Ridgewood Lane East, Glenview, was arrested around 3 a.m. on Feb. 7 and charged with criminal trespass to property after police were dispatched to a burglar alarm at the paddle ball clubhouse of the Westmoreland Country Club, 2601 Old Glenview Road.

(removed)

Julia Ivanov, 30, of the 3100 block of West Chase Avenue, Chicago, was arrested around 11 a.m. on Feb. 78 and charged with driving under the influence of cannabis, unlawful possession of cannabis by a driver and expired registration following a traffic stop near the intersection of Skokie Boulevard and Hibbard Road. Bahador Tanzif, 31, of the 9600 block of Golf Terrace, Des Plaines, was the passenger in the car and was also arrested after he retrieved a bag from the car that officers said smelled of marijuana. Tanzif was charged with felony possession of between 30 and 500 grams of cannabis with the intent to deliver. Police reported finding more than two dozen individually wrapped bags and a digital scale, and Tanzif admitted selling weed to his friends for cash, according to prosecutors.

Earlier: Victim Declines To Press Charges Against Jewelry Thief; Trespasser Tracked By Footprints In The Snow; Scammers Impersonate Facebook Support, Trusted Friends: New Trier Township Police Blotters

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