Fresh Bitcoin Mail Fraud Form Letters; Fake Microsoft: Blotters

WINNETKA, IL — The following information comes from the Glencoe, Winnetka and Northfield police departments as a record of police activity and incidents reported to the police. Anyone arrested is innocent unless proven guilty. Criminal charges represent merely accusations by the state and are often dropped or reduced.

WINNETKA

INCIDENTS

THEFT
An Ash Street resident reported that someone contacted them between May 2 and May 29 claiming to work for Microsoft and accessed their computer under fraudulent pretenses for a loss of $4,729.60.

IDENTITY THEFT
An Oak Street resident reported that between May 22 and June 1 someone used their personal information to open up an unauthorized credit card. There was no immediate loss reported.

THEFT
Someone stole an unlocked bicycle worth $400 from the 500 block of Hibbard Road between 8 a.m. and 3:40 p.m. on June 1.

IDENTITY THEFT
A Spruce Street resident reported on the morning of June 4 that someone had made an unauthorized $72.24 purchase on their debit card on May 21.

GLENCOE

INCIDENTS

CRIMINAL TRESPASS
A resident in the 1100 block of Terrace Court reported at 4:13 a.m. on May 30 that someone had gotten into an unlocked car without stealing anything.

ATTEMPTED BITCOIN MAIL FRAUD
A Madison Avenue resident received a form letter prior to June 1 threatening to reveal a "secret" unless the sender received a payment of $7,600 worth of bitcoin. Glencoe Deputy Chief of Public Safety Richard Weiner said there was no address and he believed another resident had previously received such a letter.

"People need to realize the letter is a complete fraud," Weiner said.

Similar letters demanding Bitcoin as a "confidentiality fee" have been reported in recent months by police in Northfield and Wilmette – where the letter had a postmark of Birmingham, Alabama.

ARRESTS/CITATIONS

A 24-year-old Zion man was arrested at 11 a.m. on May 30 and charged with driving with a suspended license and with expired registration in the 200 block of Linden Avenue.

Carlos Villanueva-Juarez, 48, of the 600 block of 10th Street in Waukegan, was arrested at 1:02 p.m. on June 1 following a traffic stop near the intersection of Dundee Road and Pebblewood Court on a warrant for failure to appear in connection with a charge of reckless driving, expired plates, suspended registration, uninsured vehicle, improper use of registration and suspended drivers license.

Gokhan Memik, 43, of the 1300 block of Chestnut Avenue in Wilmette, was arrested at 12:13 a.m. on June 13 following a traffic stop near the intersection of Green Bay Road and Lincoln Avenue and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and with a blood alcohol concentration above 0.08. He was also cited for speeding and improper lane usage.

An 18-year-old Waukegan man was arrested at 10:48 p.m. on May 24 near the intersection of Sheridan and Maple Hill roads and charged with driving without a valid license. He was also cited for operating a motor vehicle with one one headlight and possession of cannabis.

NORTHFIELD

INCIDENTS

BURGLARY
A staffer at a school in the 1900 block of Old Willow Road reported that someone may have broken in between May 17 and 21. Employees found a fire extinguisher "hanging in a tree." It was later determined that someone had taken from the kitchen of the attached church.

CAR BURGLARY
Someone reportedly stole the purse of a Kenilworth resident from a parked car at Sunset Ridge Country Club sometime on May 28. It was reported on the morning of May 30.

IDENTITY THEFT
A Regentwood Road resident reported on May 30 that someone had made an unauthorized withdrawal of more than $500 from their account.

ELECTRONIC HARASSMENT
A resident of the 100 block of Avon Avenue reported on the morning of June 1 that they had been receiving "harassing text messages. "

BICYCLE THEFT
A resident in the 2000 block of Norfork Road reported at 5:42 p.m. on June 1 that someone had stolen a purple Trek mountain bike worth more than $200.

IDENTITY THEFT
A resident in the 900 block of Southridge Terrace reported around 11 a.m. on June 2 that someone had made more than $1,000 in unauthorized charges on their credit card.

ARRESTS/CITATIONS

A 21-year-old Chicago man was arrested at midnight on May 31 near the intersection of Willow Road and Chapel Hill Court and charged with misdemeanor excessive speeding after he was pulled over for driving 58 mph in a 30 mph zone.

Last Week: Juvenile Caught With Stolen Car; Beach House Burglarized: Winnetka, Glencoe, Northfield Blotters, May 24-30

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