A Facebook-based neighborhood watch group has helped to put a career criminal behind bars.
Local residents stepped in to give the overloaded Chicago police a hand and put an end to thief Andrew Squires’ crime spree.
The neighborhood watch group came through for a furious victim and identified the crook.
Andrew Squires, 33, pleaded guilty to one count of felony theft and was sentenced to two years in prison, according to Chicago media.
Around 5 a.m. on July 19, 2021, two men got into an apartment building on the 600 block of West Cornelia and then stole packages and other items from the building’s mailroom before leaving.
One of the irate victims posted the surveillance video on a neighborhood watch page on Facebook.
The victim received an anonymous tip that identified Squires, who lived one block away from the robbery.
When he was arrested he was carrying three credit cards all belonging to other people.
Squires was also charged in 2017 with identity theft involving three people in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park.
A man who was charged with stealing packages from a Boystown apartment building after being recognized by members of a Facebook neighborhood watch group has been sentenced to two years.https://t.co/w08dKnOQFn
— CWBChicago (@CWBChicago) January 12, 2023
According to CWB:
Prosecutors said the $1,555 check had the victim’s name and address on the front and appeared to be endorsed with the victim’s signature.
But when police contacted the victim about the check, they allegedly told officers that they did not endorse it and didn’t know Squires.
Squires, 32, admitted to taking the check from a mailbox, prosecutors said Friday. He is now charged with a new case of felony forgery.
