Oct 7, 2008 12:13 pm US/Central
Cars Vandalized, Robbed Near Northwestern U.
EVANSTON, Ill. (STNG) ―
At least 12 cars have had their windows smashed and items inside stolen over the past 48 hours on the streets of Evanston.
The vandalism and break-ins happened just a couple blocks west of the Northwestern University campus in the near north suburb.
The incidents all happened sometime between Sunday night and Monday morning, according to an Evanston police report.
Police had no one in custody as of Tuesday morning, nor did they have a description of a suspect or suspects, Cmdr. Ron Guenther said. "It could be as simple as one person walking down the street" and taking part in what he called a "crime of opportunity."
Four cars on the 2100 block of Sherman Avenue had their windows broken and belongings inside stolen, the bulletin said. The items included cell phones, GPS devices, a radar detector and an IPass unit.
Four cars on the 2200 block of Sherman had at least one passenger side window broken, according to police. Two ocars had GPS devices taken, but two others had nothing stolen.
Four other cars, on Ridge, Darrow and Simpson, had their windows busted, according to police. Three of those had items such as GPS devices and Ipods stolen, but one car had nothing taken.
The cars that were damaged included Hondas, Jeeps, a Hyundai, Volkswagen, Toyota, Cadillac, Chevrolet and Pontiac, according to police.
While police are on the streets and have issued community public service announcements on keeping cars safe from criminals, "It's just a fact that because there is so much on-street parking in Evanston, crimes such as this will happen," Guenther said.
Still, there are steps car owners can take to lower the chances their car will be struck. "Anything from small change, CDs and shopping bags to more costly items such as Ipods, cell phones and GPS devices should be taken out of the car or hidden," he said.
"Take your GPS and hide it," he said. "Do not leave things in your car, period, if you're parked on the street."
(Source: Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2008. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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