Man Charged With Domestic Battery

Darius Reed, 20, of Niles was charged with domestic battery after an anonymous caller reported Aug. 24 he had seen a man strike a woman and then drag her into a townhome in the 6800 block of Clifton, Niles, at about 2:30 p.m.

Officers arrived at the townhome and announced their presence but could not hear any signs of the occupants in the townhome. The front door was unlocked, so they entered and announced "Niles police." After they announced it a second time, a man appeared at the top of the steps. Police handcuffed him while they investigated. Three females were present upstairs, including a 21-year-old Broadview woman, a 23-year-old Chicago woman and a 13-year-old Niles girl. The victim said she had had an argument with the offender, and she had a two-inch-long abrasion on her neck. She refused to let police photograph it. She told police the offender didn't hit her and that she didn't want him arrested. Police noted the argument appeared to be over text messages on the offender's cell phone. 

Reed's court date is Sept. 12 in the Skokie branch of the Cook County courts.

Woman's purse stolen in grocery store

A Skokie woman who was shopping at a grocery store in the 8900 block of Greenwood, Niles, on Aug. 24 at about 4:30 p.m. told police she put her purse down on a shelf while she was selecting produce, and when she turned back to it, it was gone. She found it shortly afterward sitting on top of a trash can, but $150 was missing. The store contacted the victim to tell her they had video footage showing a woman in her 40s taking the purse, removing cash from it, and depositing it on the trash can, and advised her to make a police report. The footage also showed the offender taking items out of the store without paying for them. The store's loss prevention agent said the offender had made a payment with a credit card, so they had some information on her identity. 

Information is taken from Niles police reports. Suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty. 

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