CHICAGO — A secret GPS tracker allowed a Chicago police helicopter to locate and follow a carload of armed robbers for more than 25 miles across the city, resulting in one arrest, according to prosecutors.
The robbery occurred at GameStop, 1751 West Howard, last Tuesday evening. Four men walked in, pepper-sprayed a 25-year-old female employee, and took control of keys to access two cash drawers, according to a CPD report.
Police said the crew escaped in a red SUV with $1125, a $25 gamer headset, and that pesky GPS tracker. One of CPD’s helicopters located the SUV and followed it all the way to the 13000 block of South Ellis, where it parked, and the four men ran into a nearby home. The helicopter crew gave ground units the exact address.
Cops went to the home and saw someone run out the back. That person got away. Meanwhile, a woman allowed officers into the house, where they ordered 18-year-old Dequan O’Neil to come out of the bathroom, the CPD report said. He complied.
After the GPS tracking company activated an alarm on the device, cops found it hidden amongst a stack of cash inside a box of “miscellaneous items” in the bathroom O’Neil had been in, according to the report.
Two GameStop employees identified O’Neil as one of the robbers, prosecutors said in a detention petition. Judge Susana Ortiz granted the state’s request, noting that O’Neil completed juvenile probation less than a year ago for aggravated robbery while armed with a knife.
