Dollar Store Employee Accused of Robbing Register 78 Times

EVERGREEN PARK, IL -- An Oak Lawn man and parolee is accused of robbing the till at an Evergreen Park dollar store by voiding out transactions and paying himself cash from the register, prosecutors said.

Antoine Lewis, 31, appeared before Cook County Judge Stephen Rosenblum on a theft charge after being under surveillance for more than a month by store security at Dollar Tree, 3401 W. 95th St., Evergreen Park. Lewis is currently on parole on a 2012 charge of manufacture and delivery of heroin, according to Illinois Department of Corrections records.

According to the charges, Lewis was observed voiding out transactions and pocketing $658 in cash from the register 78 times between July 12 and Aug. 6. The prosecutor said the action was captured on security video. He was arrested on Aug. 10.

Lewis is a documented gang member with four convictions for drug charges dating back to 2003, the prosecutor said. His last known address is the 9500 block of South Tripp Avenue in Oak Lawn.

Prison records show that Lewis was released on parole Oct. 27, 2015. The assistant public defender told the judge that Lewis worked at the Dollar Tree for nine months. Bail was set at $20,000. Lewis is due back in court Sept. 1 in Bridgeview.

Antoine Lewis, 31 | Cook County Sheriff