Burr Ridge Thefts: Something In Common

BURR RIDGE, IL — Eleven cars were stolen in Burr Ridge last year. All of them had something in common — the key fobs were inside, the local police chief said this week.

Thieves are cruising around Burr Ridge at night and sometimes during the day to break into cars or steal them, Chief John Madden said. This is also happening in nearby towns. Early Monday morning, at least 20 cars were burglarized in Elmhurst.

"Lock your vehicles," Madden said during a public safety forum at the Burr Ridge police station Tuesday. "Don't leave your wallet or laptop in your car.

Police are helped a lot when residents submit footage from their doorbell cameras, and some subdivisions have their camera systems linked to the police department, Madden said.

Madden said that while residents may not expect burglaries to happen in a town like Burr Ridge, criminals go to where the nice properties are. And that would be Burr Ridge. The village's median housing value is $670,000, higher than most towns in the area, according to U.S. Census statistics.

Burr Ridge is split between DuPage and Cook counties, but Madden said his department works well with authorities on both sides of the county line.

When asked about his department's relationship with Cook County prosecutors, Madden said the assistant state's attorney in charge of the county courthouse in Bridgeview "is very cooperative with us."

Madden said "whatever comes out of" State's Attorney Kimberly Foxx's downtown Chicago office is a different story. But he did not provide details.

In introducing the chief, Mayor Gary Grasso used the town's motto, "A Very Special Place."

"We are a very special place because we have a fine police department. That's because we have a great chief," said Grasso, who returned as mayor last year. "I knew him when I was mayor before. We have a close working relationship."