Crime & Safety
Phone Snatcher Nabbed In Chicago Ridge: COPS
Alleged phone snatcher waved phone and taunted woman he stole it from, prosecutor said.
CHICAGO RIDGE, IL -- A Chicago Ridge man was arrested in connection with two phone snatchings, prosecutor said. Justin O’Neal, 21, appeared before Cook County Judge Peter Felice on a felony charge of theft. The prosecutor said the charge is likely to be changed to robbery.
According to the charges, on Sept. 18, a woman was walking on Forest Lane when she was approached from behind. A man, later identified as O’Neal, snatched her iPhone 6 out of her back pocket. The prosecutor said O’Neal ran away, waving the phone and taunting the woman. O’Neal’s baseball cap fell off, which was collected for DNA evidence. A buccal swab reportedly linked the cap to O’Neal.
O’Neal has two other pending cases for robbery using a similar modus operandi, the prosecutor said. O’Neal is alleged to have snatched a phone from a woman on Oct. 21. The prosecutor said both women were able to identify O’Neal from photo arrays.
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Bail was set at $25,000. O’Neal’s next court day is Nov. 30 in Bridgeview.
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