Cops Catch Package Theft Crew Member In Stolen Car: Blotter

LAKE FOREST, IL — The following information comes from Lake Forest and Lake Bluff police and Lake County court records as a record of those arrested by police. Readers are reminded that an arrest is not an indication of guilt, and criminal charges, which represent merely accusations by the state, are often dropped or reduced. Updated information may be available from the Lake County Circuit Clerk of Courts. All persons named are innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

ARRESTS

Carlos Zambrano Alvarando, 50, of the 1600 block of Ferry Street, Waukegan, was arrested around 3 a.m. on Dec. 26 after an officer encountered him driving the wrong way on a one-way street near the Lake Bluff Train Depot, 600 Sheridan Road, before running a stop sign and speeding. The arresting officer reported Alvarando said he was lost and couldn't find his phone, which was sitting below his seat. He was taken into custody after the officer determined he appeared too intoxicated to drive. Alvarando provided two breath samples, the first indicating his breath alcohol concentration was three times the legal limit. He was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and DUI—alcohol with a breath concentration of 0.08 or greater. Police also cited him for disobeying a stop sign, a lane control device and the speed limit. While in custody, the officer reported communicating with Alvarando using the Google Translate mobile phone application. After multiple calls, Alvarando was able to contact a ride home, and the officer provided him some water and a plate of cookies.

Thomas E. Belsanti, 25, of the 800 block of Green Bay Road, Lake Forest, was arrested around 10 p.m. on Dec. 31 in the 300 block of Western Avenue after officers got a call of a car crashing into a sign and several trees. When officers tracked down the car involved, the Toyota kept speeding away from police seeking to pull it over. Eventually, Belsanti pulled into a driveway on Ridge Road with the severely damaged car left smoking. He tried to leave the scene and was taken into custody, police said. Belsanti was charged charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, criminal damage to government property, possession of a controlled substance, reckless driving, unlawful possession of cannabis, driving an uninsured motor vehicle, leaving the scene of an accident and other traffic offenses.

Michelle J. Ball, 26, of the 2400 block of West Dougdale Road, Waukegan, was arrested around 3 a.m. on Jan. 1 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol following a traffic stop on Route 41 at Westleigh Road. Officers had gotten a report of a car swerving across the road with no lights on. It had almost hit a Highland Park police car that had been helping a tow truck. After officers tracked down the car and spoke to the driver, Ball, who said she had come from a party in Chicago. Officers determined she was intoxicated. She did not provide a breath sample and prosecutors later filed paperwork to suspend her license.

Joseph J. Campbell, 25, of the 1100 block of Larkdale Row, Wauconda, was arrested around 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 6 and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and possession of cannabis in a vehicle following an investigation into a two-car crash at the intersection of Waukegan and Deerpath roads. Officers reported Campbell had rear-ended another car and smelled strongly of booze. Police said they also found unsealed cannabis and drug paraphernalia in the car. Campbell later provided a breath sample indicating his breath alcohol concentration was 0.182 — more than twice the legal limit for intoxication.

Julissa J. Montoya, 35, of the 3800 block of North Sawyer Avenue, Chicago, was arrested shortly after 3:15 a.m. on Jan. 18 and charged with burglary and possession of a stolen motor vehicle. Police reported she was the only one of three suspicious cars encountered by officers on Sheridan Road that morning who complied when they tried to pull it over — they turned out to have been stolen. Montoya admitted being part of a crew that stole more than two dozen packages from an apartment building in the 1300 block of Western Avenue, police reported. Lake Bluff police would later find an abandoned Toyota with stolen mail inside in the 400 block of Park Lane, police said. Lake Forest police determined all three stolen cars had been taken from the first block of East Franklin Place, where someone had broken into a garage and found them unlocked. Montoya was also charged with driving with a suspended license and cited over improper lighting.

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Two 17-year-old Lake County boys were arrested around 4 p.m. on Jan. 20 and charged with possession of psilocybin mushrooms, cannabis, drug paraphernalia, alcohol and a fake driver's license after police pulled over a GMC SUV lacking functional brake lights on Route 41 at Old Elm Road. During the traffic stop, an officer noticed the smell of cannabis and the driver showed a small bag and a glass pipe. The officer later found 1 pound of psilocybin mushrooms packaged in seven different bags. The case was referred to the state's attorney's office for juvenile charges and the two teens, one a resident of Grayslake, the other from Gurnee, were turned over to their parents.

Earlier: Cops Smell Pot, Find Gun While Investigating Crash; Car Catches Fire After Drunken Driver Crashes Into Tree: Lake Forest-Lake Bluff Police Blotters, Nov. 6 to Dec. 17

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