Palos Heights, Orland Park See Uptick In Unlocked Car Burglaries

PALOS HEIGHTS/ORLAND PARK, IL -- Car burglars are hitting the south suburbs shaking door handles looking for unlocked vehicles and stealing whatever they can get their hands on, police say. Burglaries have been reported in Palos Heights, Oak Forest, Lemont, Orland Park and Orland Hills. All of the crimes were preventable by locking car doors and removing or hiding valuables.

During the overnight hours of March 29 to March 30, Palos Heights police said numerous cars were entered. The purported burglars took cash, a briefcase and a tablet. Images of the suspect and vehicle were caught on a neighbor’s home security camera. The footage captured multiple suspects entering the vehicle. A neighbor arriving home about 12:30 a.m. March 30. The neighbor claims to have seen the vehicle and described the suspect as an African-American male, about 6 feet tall, and wearing camouflage pants. Orland Park police found the briefcase in the 15200 block of South Catalina.

Orland Park also experienced several car burglaries during the same time period. On Wednesday, March 29, there were eleven unlocked vehicles entered and burglarized in Orland Park. There were many more in Orland Hills and Oak Forest, OPPD said on Facebook. The suspects were captured on surveillance video.

Anyone with useful information to share with police about these incidents can call Palos Heights PD at 708-448-5060 or Orland Park PD at 708-349-4111.

Surveillance video of suspects in car unlocked car burglaries. | Orland Park Police