Forest Park Review, March 4, 2020
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C R I M E
Handgun recovered from sidewalk A silver Smith and Wesson SV9 handgun with one round in the chamber and several more in the magazine was found on the sidewalk on the 1100 block of Circle Avenue on March 1 at 11:07 a.m. The police report mentioned that an arrest was made for aggravated fleeing/eluding in the early hours of that same day, and the vehicle fled southbound on Circle, passing the location where the gun was located and recovered.
Unlocked car ransacked A woman on the 100 block of Elgin reported her car had been ransacked on Feb. 28 at 8:16 p.m. The caller reviewed surveillance video clips on her phone and observed an unknown male enter her unlocked vehicle and go through the contents of her car. The woman reported that nothing appeared to be missing from her vehicle.
Residence deemed chronic nuisance property On Feb. 24 a property on the 1100 block of Thomas Avenue was deemed a Chronic Nuisance Property due to many complaints since the current tenants moved in. Numerous calls received by the police department include shots fired, guns and reports of drugs. On Jan. 26, police responded to a loud music complaint combined with reports of vehicles illegally parked after 2 a.m. According to police reports, the tenant “has been notified of all reported disruptive incidents and has refused to make any changes.” The tenant has a March court date.
Cash register stolen from store Officers reported to 407 Desplaines Ave. when the burglar alarm went off on Feb. 25 at 4:13 a.m. Security cameras showed a large, black SUV pulling up in front of the store. Several seconds later, a second and smaller dark SUV pulled in front of the initial vehicle. Six subjects, wearing masks and gloves, exited from the two vehicles and approached the front door of the shop. One subject began to break the front door to gain entry. Once inside, two of the subjects checked the ATM to see if it was secured to the floor. It was. Another pulled the cash register from behind the counter and exited the store with it. One subject opened the cooler and took a can of soda. The thieves were in the store approximate-
Woman selling loosies given citation
ly one minute before the SUVs were seen in motion again. The store owners reported the loss to be one cash register with $3,500 in it and one small Chase bag used as a till containing $1,100.
Car, left running to warm up, stolen A customer of a bar at 427 Desplaines, had his friend’s car stolen on Feb. 28 at 8:30 p.m. when he left the vehicle running for half an hour to warm it up. The owner of the car reported that he had lent it to a friend for a few months.
Man with public indecency warrant steals water A man, who was fingerprinted and found to have a valid warrant for public indecency and lewd behavior, stole water at the Bed,
Bath and Beyond store, 215 Harlem Ave., on Feb. 29 at 10:57 a.m. In Bed, Bath and Beyond, according to the loss prevention officer, the man took a bottle of water from on top of a beverage case, opened it and drank it. As soon as the loss prevention officer approached the subject, he tossed the bottle of water into the trash. When told by the officer that he needed to pay for the water, he said “the water didn’t taste good so I threw it out and I’m not gonna pay for it.” He left the store and was found by police in the 7-Eleven parking lot down the street. He was arrested for obstructing ID when he failed to cooperate with police and, when fingerprinted at the station, found to have a valid warrant with the Cook County Sherriff Police.
A woman was given a citation for selling “loosies” at the Blue Line train stop at 711 Desplaines Ave. on Feb. 27 at 1:36 p.m. The reporting officer saw her exchanging one loose cigarette (loosie) for a dollar from an unknown man. She was told by the officer that selling cigarettes is illegal, and she stated she does it to make a profit. Her cigarettes were confiscated, and she was issued a citation for unlawful soliciting/peddling/ begging. These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, Feb. 24- March 1, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anybody named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. These cases have not been adjudicated.
Compiled by Maria Maxham
Tip hotline Anyone with information regarding the cases mentioned in this report, or on another matter, is encouraged to contact the Forest Park police department’s hotline at 708-615-6239. Information may be left anonymously.
Forest Park man gets 12 years in prison for child pornography Forest Park detective assisted in investigation By MARIA MAXHAM Staff Reporter
On Wednesday, Feb. 26, a Forest Park man was sentenced to more than 12 years in prison for amassing a huge child pornography collection and ordered to pay $187,500 in restitution to the known child victims. The case was investigated by the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, including members from
the Cook County Sheriff ’s Office and Cook County State Attorney’s Investigations Bureau. The Forest Park Police Department, specifically Jarlath Heveran of the Internet Crimes Against Children task force, was involved in the investigation as well. Jonathan Stephens, 50, was arrested on Jan. 25, 2018 and has been in custody since then. In 2018, he pled guilty to one count of transportation of child pornography. On Feb. 26, 2019, U. S. District Judge Ronald A. Guzman sentenced Stephens to 12 years and seven months in prison, to be followed by nine years of supervised release. Over a period of at least four years, Ste-
phens collected approximately 194,000 sexually explicit images and videos, many of them of minors under the age of 12, on computers and external hard drives in his home. He allowed others to access and download the images and videos, which, according to the United States Attorney’s office, showed children “forced to engage in sadistic and masochistic conduct.” In the government’s sentencing memorandum, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeannice W. Appenteng, who represented the government with Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared C. Jodrey, talked about the nature of the crimes.
“The defendant’s victims are numerous,” said Appenteng. “Each child depicted in the images and videos went through a horrible experience and continues to relive that suffering and endure new suffering because of the defendant’s actions.” Forest Park’s Heveran said that, along with the FBI, he spent four to five months investigating Stephens. “He was out of control,” said Heveran about Stephens’ accumulation of child pornography. “That’s how I would describe him. He didn’t know how to stop. He was at it day and night, living in filth.” Shortly after Stephens’ arrest, his house was condemned.
