Crime & Safety
Police Collar 4 Men in Cell Phone Robberies
Homewood residents were warned about recent robberies in an alert sent out Sept. 1. Since then, police captured four men, who are all 19 or 20 years old.
Four men, all 19 or 20 years old, are charged in connection with recent robberies on Homewood's east side, police said.
READ: Homewood Police Department Issues Cell Phone Robbery Warning
Homewood police arrested the four men on Sept. 1, just a few hours after sending out an alert to residents about the robberies through the village's Electronic Neighborhood Watch program.
All four men were charged with one count of aggravated robbery and robbery, police said. One of the accused lives in Glenwood while the rest reside in Chicago. Police did not immediately release their identities.
A group of up to four young men between the ages of 18 and 21 had been stealing the cell phones from people who were on their way to or from their homes and cars, police said in the weekend alert. The crimes typically happened between 6:30 p.m. and 11 p.m., in the area east of Ashland Avenue and Riegel Road on main streets such as 183rd and 187th.
An ongoing investigation by Homewood detectives linked the four men to the robberies, police said.
One incident from Aug. 31 involved through juvenile victims. In that incident, the robbers said they were "loaded" but never display a handgun and only indicated they had one, according to a Homewood report. One victim who didn't have a cell phone was punched three times in the face, police said.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
