Pair charged with suburban bank robbery spree using stolen AK- 47
A west suburban man and woman have been charged with robbing three banks in May using a stolen AK- 47 rifle.
James D. Williams, 41, and Alexis T. Handelman, 21, are accused of three armed takeover bank robberies in a three- week period, according to a statement from the FBI. They are both residents of Bartlett.
The duo has been charged with robbing an Old Second Bank branch May 11 at 323 E. Norris Drive in Ottawa in north central Illinois; a NorStates Bank branch May 21 at 5384 Grand Ave. in north suburban Gurnee; and an Aurora Bank and Trust branch May 31 at 2287 W. Galena Blvd. in west suburban Aurora, authorities said.
Leading up to the robberies, Williams stole an AK- 47 rifle and rented different vehicles, according to the FBI. In at least one of the incidents, he attached stolen license plates to a vehicle he’d rented.
Williams was arrested by federal agents on May 31 and Handelman was arrested on unrelated local charges June 18, the FBI said. They have both since been indicted on federal bank robbery charges.
Luke Wilusz
Driver shot by passenger
A man was shot by a passenger while driving early Thursday in the South Shore, according to Chicago Police.
The 32- year- old was driving when he got into an argument with the passenger, who took out a handgun and shot him at 4: 11 a. m. in the 7200 block of South South Shore Drive, police said.
He was shot in the chest and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition, police said.
A possible suspect was in custody, police said. No further information was available.
Taylor Hartz
Burglaries reported in Gage Park
A string of garage burglaries was reported last month in the Southwest Side Gage Park neighborhood.
In five incidents, burglars broke into homes and garages and stole property, according to an alert from Chicago police. They happened:
At 9: 42 p. m. June 20 in the 5200 block of South Campbell.
Between 9: 30 p. m. June 23 and 10: 30 a. m. June 24 in the 5300 block of South Maplewood.
Between 5 a. m. and 3: 10 p. m. June 26 in the 5400 block of South California.
Between 7: 20 p. m. June 28 and 10 a. m. June 29 in the 5300 block of South Western Avenue.
Between 7: 30 p. m. and 12 a. m. June 29 in the 3000 block of West 53rd Street.
Anyone with information about the burglaries is asked to call Area Central detectives at ( 312) 7478382. Sun- Times Wire
Truck breaks down on Stevenson after fleeing hit- and- run crash
Two people have been charged with misdemeanors after a hit- andrun crash Thursday morning in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood on the Southwest Side. A box truck crashed into two other vehicles at 9: 22 a. m. in the 5900 block of South Harlem, according to Chicago police. The crash caused one of the vehicles to roll over.
The 27- year- old man driving the vehicle that rolled over was taken to MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn in good condition, police said. The 54- year- old man driving the other vehicle that was hit was treated and released by paramedics at the scene.
Jehad Hussein, 29, of Justice, ran from the scene after the crash, police said. He was later taken into custody by Justice police and identified as the driver of the box truck.
Mahmound Abu- Shtayah, 29, of Burbank, was a passenger in the box truck when the crash occurred, police said. After the crash, he got into the driver’s seat and drove the truck onto the Stevenson Expressway.
When the box truck broke down on the expressway because of the damage it sustained in the crash, Abu- Shtayah got out and attempted to jump into the Illinois and Michigan Canal, police said.