Hobart Home Invasion Leads To Pursuit
On October 15, 2021 at approximately 7:30 PM on the 7700 block of Dakota Street in Hobart, an elderly victim reported that she received a phone call from her neighbor about some suspicious males who came to his home inquiring about his utilities and tried to get him to exit his home, according to Captain James Gonzales of The Hobart Police.
The victim told the Officer she got off the phone with the neighbor and attempted to contact another neighbor about the incident, as she was trying to contact the other neighbor, she received a knock on her door. She told the Officer she answered the door and she described the person at her door as a “chubby”, male black, over 6′ tall with a chipped front tooth wearing khaki pants and a Bears hat, she said he told her he was with the water company and she had to stop drinking her water immediately.
She told the Officer that the male entered her home uninvited and told her to trust him, because he is a Christian man. She told the Officer that the male lead her to the back of her home to the sliding glass doors and they exited to her deck, furthermore she said the male subject pointed to a light in the distance and told her that was the water company and they were in the area working. She said the male was communicating with someone else via a walkie talkie, she said a short time later, the male ran away from her and went between the house and the garage and to the driveway. She said he entered a vehicle that was parked in her driveway, as the male was entering the vehicle, her neighbor also witnessed two other people getting into the vehicle too. She said the vehicle fled from her driveway.
She said she entered her home with her neighbor and noticed there was silverware on the floor, which came from a silverware set she owned , she further told the Officer that the silverware was missing along with her wedding/engagement set. She said the items stolen were worth several thousand dollars.
While on scene, Officers also spoke with the neighbor who told them he witnessed what appeared to be 3 male blacks entering into a black Jeep Cherokee with temporary license plates.
A short time after the suspect vehicle fled from the scene, a Hobart Officer responding to the burglary call noticed a dark colored Jeep Cherokee traveling at a high rate of speed with the lights off on 7800 block of Colorado Street, which is a block away from the victim’s home. The Officer reported that he activated his emergency lights and siren and attempted to stop the Cherokee, but the vehicle continued to travel at a high rate of speed.
The Officer reported the driver of the Cherokee was driving through red lights and also traveled west bound in the east bound lanes of traffic on Route 30. The Officer along with other Hobart Officers followed the vehicle north on I-65 to 80/94, west on 80/94 to Kennedy Avenue, the driver continued north bound on Kennedy Avenue and drove through several streets in Hammond, the driver then drove to the 80/90 Toll Road and continued west on the Toll road to the Dan Ryan and then traveled north. Hobart units then terminated the pursuit. Officers were able only to obtain a partial plate number of the Indiana temporary tag of L135 and they also described the vehicle to have dark tinted windows.
Please be aware that there are people who portray themselves to be utility workers and commonly prey on the elderly population. Hobart Police encourage residents to not answer or open their door, unless you are expecting someone. If you have someone knocking on your door and do not know who they are, call the police and get a description of the person(s) and the type of vehicle.
Police also encourage residents to consider purchasing a home surveillance system, which there are many brands available, they are very affordable and easily operated even for people who are technologically challenged or feel intimidated by technology.
If anyone has any additional information or might know the suspects, please contact Sergeant Robert Brazil at 219-942-4666 or by e-mail at rbrazil@cityofhobart.org
