An off-duty Oak Forest police officer driving his truck Feb. 2 in Kankakee County helped police there catch a car thief after stopping to help what he thought was a stranded driver, Oak Forest police reported.
Officer Craig Zelhart saw a car in a ditch and another car behind it, and a young woman suddenly jumped in front of his pickup truck, causing him to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting her, police said.
Zelhart reported that the woman didn’t have a coat on and started yelling that she needed help and a ride to Beecher. He let the woman into his truck, and as he tried to question the driver of the other car about what had happened, the man quickly drove away, according to police.
They said Zelhart identified himself as a police officer and asked the woman if the car in the ditch was stolen. She admitted stealing the car from outside a bar that she was leaving in Grant Park because she was tired of walking everywhere and being cold, police reported.
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The woman began climbing into the truck bed where Zelhart stores guns, he grabbed her and the two struggled until the women hit him with a bag and “began speaking in tongues,” according to the police report.
Two other cars stopped to help, and Zelhart asked one of the drivers to call 911, police said.
Kankakee County police later confirmed that the car was reported stolen from Grant Park.
Local police told Zelhart that the 21-year-old Grant Park woman was known to be mentally ill and was off her medication, police reported.
Kate McCann is a freelance reporter.