Chicago police interrupt South Side train heist, dozens of TVs left behind; shown on surveillance video

CHICAGO — An attempted train heist overnight in Englewood on the city’s South Side led to several arrests and dozens of TVs being recovered by police when they interrupted the burglary in progress.

According to Chicago police, officers were responding to an in-progress burglary around 1:30 a.m. Thursday in the 6300 block of South Wentworth Avenue when they observed four males loading merchandise from a train onto a truck bed.

Surveillance video obtained by WGN shows the suspects pulling into a gas station and using a hole in a fence to access the train tracks, before coming back with big-screen TVs. The surveillance video also shows a beige pick-up truck parked at the scene.

Shortly after, the footage shows, TVs begin piling up in the bed of the truck. They keep piling up, and about 15 minutes into the heist, a black sedan backs into a spot. A man can be seen getting out of the sedan and running up around a fence.

The footage continues like this until the first of several squad cars pulls up and interrupts the burglary in progress.

According to police, the offenders attempted to flee the scene, but all were taken into custody after a short foot chase. The surveillance video shows offenders being placed in handcuffs after apparently dumping some of the stolen merchandise as they tried to get away.

Police say 39 flat-screen TVs were recovered at the scene.

Area One detectives are investigating the attempted heist, and police say charges are pending.

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