Police caught a break last week when a CPD surveillance camera captured images of an auto burglary on an Old Town street that has been plagued by car break-ins. Felony burglary charges have been filed.
CWBChicago reported in April about the soaring number of burglaries from vehicles on Clark Street and Stockton Drive between La Salle Drive and Armitage Avenue in Lincoln Park.
With no residency restrictions and the ability to pay meters remotely, Clark Street and Stockton Drive are tempting options for people who want to avoid garage parking fees. But those thrifty drivers overlook the piles of broken auto glass beneath their feet at their own peril.
Reported vehicle break-ins along Clark and Stockton soared from 76 in 2015 to 171 last year. An untold number of similar crimes remain unrecorded because the victims chose to not file police reports.
Arrests are rare, though.
But cops apparently caught a break last week. A burglar broke into a woman’s car on the 1900 block of North Clark, taking a purse, iPad, MacBook Pro, AirPods, and a handbag. Combined value? $3,450, according to police.
Investigators checked footage from a nearby police camera, and an officer identified the burglar immediately, police said. It was 20-year-old Rayshay Moore, the officer said. Local cops were told to keep an eye out for Moore in the neighborhood.
Two days later, around noon on Oct. 4, police spotted Moore in the 400 block of North Evergreen and took him into custody. Arresting officers said he had two spark plugs with him.
Ceramic bits from broken spark plugs are commonly used to shatter car windows with ease. The tiny bits even have earned the nickname “ninja rocks” for their effectiveness.
Prosecutors charged Moore with felony burglary. Judge David Navarro set bail at $25,000.
