Parolee Ransacks Own House, Files Fake Burglary Report: Prosecutor

Matthew Blankenship, 23 | Cook County Sheriff

Oak Lawn, IL -- An Oak Lawn man home on parole ransacked his own house and then called police to report it as a burglary, prosecutors said Monday in court.

Matthew Blankenship, 23, appeared before Cook County Judge Peter Felice on a felony charge of disorderly conduct and misdemeanor theft.

According to the court records, Blankenship called 911 around 5 p.m. May 1 to report that two people had broken into his home in the 5800 block of West 89th Avenue and were trying to steal his television set.

Police said that Blankenship messed up the house to make it look as if it had been ransacked. Blankenship also allegedly stole his mother’s debit card and was identified on security video using the card at Walgreens.

The assistant public defender told the judge that Blankenship lived with his mother.

Blankenship was released from the Illinois Department of Corrections in January, where he had been serving a sentence for burglary and and possession of a controlled substance. The sentence is not to be discharged until January 2017.

Judge Felice set bail at $150,000. Blankenship’s next court hearing is May 24 in Bridgeview.