A South Suburban couple has been charged with a string of auto shop robberies and are considered suspects in several others, police announced Wednesday, after they were arrested after allegedly striking a store for the second time.
Joseph Crawford, 23, of the 2200 block of Fulton Street, and Jordan Coley, 26, of the same address, were both charged with aggravated kidnapping and armed robbery with a firearm. They are considered suspects in another three in different south suburbs, police said.
Hazel Crest police said about 4:15 p.m. on Sunday, officers responded to a call of an armed robbery at an Advance Auto on 183rd Street and Pulaski Road. Store employees gave a description of the vehicle involved which was subsequently pulled over by police leading to the arrests of Crawford and Coley.
Detective Reginald Cotton, of the Hazel Crest Police Department, said the couple was seen on surveillance footage in previous robberies. He also said Crawford used a replica firearm that looked like a real revolver in the robberies, something he says police have seen before.
“No one knows it’s not a real gun,” he said. “Someone perceives it as being a real gun, it’s a real gun by law.”
Cotton said Coley was the driver while Crawford robbed the stores, in some cases tying up the employees and moving them into the shops. In one instance, one of the employees broke free and called police, he said.
The three robberies Crawford and Coley are currently charged with, according to a police news release, were committed at an O’Reilly’s Auto store on Kedzie in Hazel crest on June 22, and an Advanced Auto on 183rd and Pulaski, also in Hazel crest. The Advanced Auto is the location the couple allegedly robbed twice before their arrest.
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Crawford and Coley were expected in Markham Court for a bond hearing Wednesday. Police said Crawford was held in lieu of $500,000 and Coley was held in lieu of $250,000.
Cotton said the couple told police they were having financial problems, that’s why they started robbing auto stores.
“It’s an unfortunate situation for anyone, especially given their age, being that young and making bad decisions,” he said.
