Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- A man who allegedly stole credit cards from an unlocked car on McCarthy Road Saturday tried to make sizeable purchases at the Walmart in Richton Park, police said in a report.
An officer was dispatched to McCarthy Road at around 8:00 AM on July 23 to investigate a report of a burglary to a vehicle. The officer spoke with a woman who said she exited her car on July 22 around 8 PM and did not lock the vehicle. She left several credit cards in the center console, according to police.
She told police she discovered the credit cards missing when a charge she did not authorize was declined. Someone attempted to spend over $1,400.00 at Walmart in Richton Park on Saturday morning. When that sale did not go through, they attempted to purchase something in excess of $800.00, according to police. Two smaller purchases totaling just over $60 total were successful at the Walmart gas station and at Wendy’s in Chicago Heights.
The responding officer checked security footage at Walmart and observed a man who walked into Walmart at 6:33 AM and went to the self-checkout area after spending time shopping. The man had a large television and several other items he placed in a bag. He unsuccessfully tried several cards as forms of payment which got declined at 7:07 AM, according to police. An employee noticed him having difficulty paying and directed him to a customer service area. There, the man attempted to purchase only the television but his cards were declined again. He left the Walmart store at 7:19 AM with nothing in his hands, according to police.
He then drove a red SUV with a chrome roof rack to the gas station at the scene and successfully bought gas, police said in the report.
The alleged offender wore a black hooded sweatshirt, had a black face covering, grey sweat pants, and black shoes with white stripes.
Police continue to investigate.
This was the only burglary reported during the week of July 19 through July 25, 2022.
