Prosecutors have charged two men with felony burglary after police allegedly saw them breaking into cars in the Gold Coast.
Officers in the 18th Police District pulled up CPD surveillance camera feeds after a 911 caller reported people breaking into cars on the first block of East Scott shortly after midnight Wednesday, according to police and Assistant State’s Attorney James Murphy.
The cops watched as one man broke a car window, climbed half-way into the vehicle, and emerged with stolen property, Murphy said in bond court on Thursday. He then got into the passenger side of a black SUV, which was driven by another man.
The camera monitors dispatched descriptions of the men and their vehicle to patrol officers who spotted an SUV driving the wrong way in the 900 block of North Lake Shore Drive a few minutes later, Murphy said.
Police pulled the car over and officers in the camera room identified the occupants as the car burglars, according to Murphy. A total of four vehicles were burglarized, according to a CPD media statement.
Prosecutors charged 38-year-old Willis Baker with felony burglary and misdemeanor criminal trespass to vehicles. Murphy said Baker previously served prison time for residential burglary in 2008 and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.
Judge Susana Ortiz released him on his own recognizance.
Larry McGee, 50, is charged with felony burglary, misdemeanor theft and driving on a suspended license. Prosecutors said his criminal history includes five drug-related felony convictions and three misdemeanor convictions. Ortiz also released him on his own recognizance.