A man seriously injured in a rollover crash in the 2300 block of 17th Avenue in North Riverside has died, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.
John-Paul S. Burgos, 35, of North Riverside, was pronounced dead at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 8, according to the medical examiner. The cause of death was listed as complications from multiple injuries resulting from a vehicle collision.
Burgos was a passenger in a Toyota Corolla that made a U-turn while southbound on 17th Avenue and was struck by a black Mercedes headed northbound in the 2300 block of 17th Avenue. The driver of the Toyota was not seriously injured, police said. Burgos was found unresponsive inside the Toyota following the rollover crash.
The driver of the Mercedes fled the scene on foot immediately following the crash. Police said last week that they’d questioned a person of interest, but no one is in custody at present and the investigation continues, said Deputy Police Chief Christian Ehrenberg.
“We’re pursuing some very good leads,” Ehrenberg said, “but I can’t discuss it due to the seriousness of this incident.”
Cellphone store robbed
North Riverside police responded to T-Mobile, 2312 Harlem Ave., on Oct. 31 at 3:20 p.m. after an employee called to report that three men, one of whom implied he was armed, had just robbed the store.
According to the police report, three males in their teens or early 20s entered the store and one stood by the door as a lookout while the other two went up to a display and ripped iPhones from their security sensors.
When employees tried to intervene, one of the males reportedly yelled, “If you come by us, we’ll cut you,” causing the employees to back off.
The three then left the store and entered a tan vehicle, described as a Buick LeSabre or Buick Century with light body damage.
The items reported stolen included three iPhone X phones with a collective value of about $3,000.
Windshield smashed
A resident of the 4500 block of Elm Avenue, Brookfield, called police on Nov. 10 about 10:20 p.m. to report that someone had just smashed out the windshield of his car, which was parked in his driveway.
Police talked to a witness who said he was outside taking out the trash when he heard wheels screeching and saw a black Mitsubishi Eclipse pull up behind the victim’s vehicle. A man exited the passenger side of the Mitsubishi with a crowbar and began smashing the windshield of the victim’s windshield.
The offender apparently didn’t notice the witness, who was about 10 feet away, and ran back to the Mitsubishi, which drove away eastbound on Gerritsen Avenue, after the witness asked what he was doing.
A Brookfield man called police on Oct. 10 about 2:30 a.m. to report that his red 2003 Ford F25 pickup truck had been stolen from outside Phil’s Sports Bar and Grill, 8901 Burlington Ave.
The victim told police that around 2:25 a.m. he went out to start his truck and then went back inside the bar, leaving the truck unlocked with the keys in the ignition. Two minutes later, he heard a loud noise outside and exited the bar to find his truck missing.
The truck reportedly knocked over a light pole, electrical box and a “no parking” sign, driving across a vacant lot to the west of the bar before heading northbound on Prairie Avenue where it was last seen.
Leaves used to set fire
Brookfield police used a fire extinguisher to put out a bushel of burning leaves that apparently had been set aflame intentionally and set against a garage door in the 9000 block of Southview Avenue.
Police responded to the scene about 1 a.m. on Nov. 10 and reported that the flames from the burning leaves had melted the trim of the garage door and caused burn marks to the overhead door.
The victim reportedly gave police photos of threatening messages someone had sent him recently, believing they might be connected to the incident, which remains under investigation.
IRS scammer nets personal info
A 35-year-old North Riverside man called police on Nov. 1 after receiving a phone call from someone claiming to be an IRS agent and demanding payment of taxes. Failure to do so, the caller said, would result in arrest.
After confirming his Social Security number with the unknown caller, the victim got suspicious and ended the call before dialing police.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Riverside, North Riverside and Brookfield police departments, Oct. 31-Nov. 11, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anybody named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. These cases have not been adjudicated.
— Compiled by Bob Uphues
