Friendly Guy on Party Bus Swipes Wallet to Buy Xbox, Toiletries: Prosecutor

ALSIP, IL -- A Chicago man who befriended several people on a party bus was charged with swiping a partygoer’s wallet and using the credit-debit card to purchase items at Target, prosecutors said in court on Tuesday.

Brian Stewart, 19, appeared before Judge Kerry Kennedy on a charge of unlawful use of a credit-debit card. Stewart was arrested on Aug. 29.

The prosecutor said that on July 3, Stewart was part of an outing on a party bus, where he had befriended several people in the group. The bus stopped at a residence in the 11700 block of South Rosemary, Alsip.

The next morning, the host woke up and found that his wallet had been stolen, which contained his credit-debit card and $200 cash, along with a 40-inch color TV. He put a fraud alert on his bank card, and learned that it had been used at Target store at 1 South State St., in Chicago, the prosecutor said.

Stewart was arrested on Aug. 29, where he allegedly admitted to Alsip police to using the debit-credit card to purchase toiletries and an Xbox 1.

The assistant public defender told the judge that Stewart is due to start high school in Chicago next week.

Stewart has a pending burglary case, the prosecutor said. Bail was set at $50,000, along with random drug testing and electronic home monitoring should Stewart bond out.

Stewart’s next court hearing is Sept. 19 in Bridgeview.

Brian Stewart, 19 | Cook County Sheriff