Thieves Go For Bronze: Oak Park Crime Briefs

Armed Robbery Arrest

Markey Dismukes, 18, of the 600 block of North Laramie Avenue in Chicago, was charged with armed robbery after he was identified as the offender who pulled a gun on a 22-year-old man in the 400 block of North Austin Boulevard and stole his backpack.

Shortly after the stickup, Dismukes was spotted by officers in the 5500 block of Ohio Street in Chicago, police said.

Aggravated Robbery

Police are searching for a man they say hopped over the counter of a local pharmacy, struggled with the cashier and swiped $80 from a pile of bills that fell to the ground.

The incident took place at CVS Pharmacy, 6748 W. Roosevelt Road, where the man strolled to the cashier and made a purchase. Once the register was open, the man jumped over the counter and tried to grab cash from the register. During the ensuing struggle with the cashier, the register tumbled to the ground, and the man grabbed about $80, stuck his hand uner his shirt, said he had a gun and ran away.

Precious Metals

The recent thefts of two big bronze plaques in Oak Park have investigators on the lookout for a crime they say is on the uptick.

Sometime between Aug. 1 and Aug. 15, an 8-inch by 3.5 inch plaque outside local accounting firm Frank Sassetti & Company went missing. Employees there said the plaque, which carried the name of the business, had been there for more than forty years. It was valued at $800.

Roughly around the same time, officials at the noticed a blonze plaque memorializing World War I veterans was missing from outside the . The plaque, valued at $1,500, was attached to a boulder outside the building.

Caught on the Roof

Devon Lawery, 19, of the 4600 block of Monroe Street in Chicago, was charged with attempted burglary after he was spotted on the roof of Laury's Bakery, 12 Madison St., police said. In his possession were a pair of gloves, a flashlight and a cutting tool police believe was used to cut a hole in the building’s roof. Lawery was also arrested on a Cook County warrant for criminal trespass to a residence.