A man accused of burglarizing apartment buildings in Chicago’s West Loop and Old Town to steal residents’ identities has been indicted in a case involving 13 victims, including three older than 60, prosecutors say.
A Cook County grand jury recently indicted Daniel Krichilsky, 45, on two counts of burglary, three counts of aggravated identity theft involving victims older than 60, and one count of identity theft. Prosecutors allege the scheme occurred between April 23, 2023, and January 26, 2024, and left victims with losses ranging from $10,000 to $100,000.
Among the burglaries detailed in the indictment, prosecutors say Krichilsky targeted an apartment building in the 700 block of West Randolph Street in the West Loop on May 18, 2023, and another building in the 1500 block of North Orleans Street in Old Town on August 17, 2023. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service said the burglaries involved mail theft.
If the allegations are true, the crime spree began while Krichilsky was on bail in another burglary case that stemmed from a July 2022 arrest in Lincoln Park. According to court records, a property manager called police after finding Krichilsky inside an apartment building in the 2000 block of North Clybourn Avenue, allegedly damaging furnaces, an internet server rack, and an office door. While officers were on the scene, Krichilsky reportedly told the cops he was “trying to fix their air conditioning.”
Police arrested him, and a search allegedly revealed Krichilsky was carrying $843 in cash, 14 credit, debit, and gift cards, a check, two driver’s licenses bearing different names, a laptop, and two counterfeit U.S. Postal Service master keys, according to court filings.
But in May 2023, a month after the latest round of burglaries allegedly began, prosecutors allowed Krichilsky to plead the Lincoln Park case down to a misdemeanor trespassing charge. Judge Timothy Joyce sentenced him to two years’ probation, but court records show a probation violation warrant has been out for Krichilsky’s arrest since October 2024. Krichilsky is once again free, awaiting trial.
Court records show Krichilsky’s previous Cook County convictions include manufacture or delivery of heroin in 2017, for which he received probation; felony theft of between $100,000 and $500,000 in 2018, which also resulted in probation; and two burglary convictions in 2021 that resulted in a three-year prison sentence, most of which was satisfied through time spent on electronic monitoring.
Original reporting you’ll see nowhere else, paid for by our readers. Click here to support our work.
