A husband and wife were bound by duct tape and robbed of valuable artwork during a Friday morning home invasion in Evanston, police say.
Three men initially stated they had a delivery for the 67-year-old male, then forced their way into the couple’s home at the 2200 block of Central St. at approximately 8:55 a.m., police said.
"During the conversation he just went outside, opened that front door and let his associate in and while he was doing that, he grabbed me by the side and threw me down on the floor," Ronald Fink recalled hours later.
The robbers bound Fink and his wife with duct taped and stole four pieces of artwork from the home.
Two of the paintings, a 1950’s oil painting and a print of a crucifixion by the same artist, were valued at anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 each. The other two prints were not of value, the victims told police.
"We believe they were specifically targeted. We also believe, based on the investigation, that the individuals may have known the previoius transaction that the victim did a long time ago involving an art piece that was of high value, and that, we believe, is what brought the offenders to this specific location," said Cmdr. Jay Parrot.
The attackers are described as being white or Hispanic. They are suspected to be driving a small white box style truck that may have been rented from Budget car rental.
Fink and his wife were taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Anyone with information on the crime should call the Evanston Police Department at 847-866-5000. Tips can also be sent via text message. Text "CRIMES" and then type EPDTIP in the message line followed by your information on the incident.
