LINCOLN PARK — It took a couple of tries, but police finally caught one of two men who allegedly tried Tuesday to break into a house in the 1100 block of Fort Park.
The resident called about 1 a.m. to say he had been watching television in his living room when he heard glass breaking. He said he also heard someone trying to get inside his house through the door on its north side.
Police found fresh footprints in the snow leading from the side door to the porch, but found no one.
The resident called again 15 minutes later to say he again had been watching TV and heard a noise, but this time he saw two men standing on his porch. The pair took off when they saw the resident look out the window, running east along the street before getting into a dark-colored sedan, which drove south on Fort Park.
Police this time found one of the kitchen windows open. Officers then returned in another vehicle and did surveillance on the house.
One spotted two men trying to get inside the house through the kitchen window and called for backup. One of the men tried to pull the window open while the other stood lookout. Both saw that police were watching and left on foot south through an alley west of Fort Park.
A backup officer shortly afterward caught up with one of the men, a 19-year-old Fort Park resident who a surveilling officer identified as the man who tried to pull open the window. Police arrested him after noticing that he had several cuts on his hands.
The other man escaped. He is described as being in his late teens to early 20s and was wearing a white hooded sweatshirt bearing a dark-colored pattern.
Damage to the window is estimated at $250.
— Tom Tigani