3 suspects charged after armed robbery, SWAT response at liquor store in Chicago suburb
MIDLOTHIAN, Ill. (CBS) – Three suspects were arrested and charged after an armed robbery and SWAT response at a liquor store in south suburban Midlothian and a police chase into Chicago on Wednesday.
Police said they were called to the scene around 10:15 a.m. for the armed robbery in progress. CBS 2's Suzanne Le Mignot went to the scene at Emporium Liquors in Midlothian near 147th and Springfield Avenue, where the SWAT team used smoke grenades to get the suspected robbers out of the store.
Midlothian Police Chief Daniel Delaney said arriving officers saw two individuals exiting the store. One of the suspects fled the scene in a van, and the other went back into the store, where there was also a third suspect who was holding multiple witnesses and employees at gunpoint. The two suspects inside the store barricaded themselves inside a cooler, which prompted police to call the South Suburban Emergency Response team, the local SWAT unit.
Police did not specify how many people were held at gunpoint inside but said they were able to escape the liquor store after the suspects barricaded themselves in the store. No one was injured.
CBS 2 watched on the ground as the SWAT team gathered with shields raised. Police told CBS 2's crew to move back. That's when the team charged the building amid a plume of thick, white smoke used to distract the suspects.
A negotiator was sent in back at the liquor store where a man could be heard over a loudspeaker saying, "Come to the front door of the building with your hands up." Police said the negotiation was lengthy but they were able to arrest the two barricaded suspects without incident.
CBS 2 cameras captured a man leaving the building with his hands in the air. He walked backward toward the waiting SWAT members. They got the man on his knees and handcuffed him.
The suspect who fled the scene in a van led police on a chase to Chicago, where he was arrested after a short foot pursuit, Delaney said.
At the scene of the armed robbery, there was an officer on the roof of the building, sitting behind what appeared to be a very large weapon. There were police on the side of the building and in front as well. Video from the Citizen app showed a previous smoke bomb being thrown toward the liquor store and the canister ricocheting back, toward the street.
Police said no injuries were reported during the entire incident.
On Thursday, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office charged the suspects; Gentree Mcelroy, 53, of Hometown, IL, Lourenzie Conner, 52, of Chicago, and Michael D. Lewis, 35, of Chicago, IL.
All three were charged with aggravated kidnapping and armed robbery. Mcelroy was also charged with possession of a controlled substance, Illinois Department of Corrections parole violation warrant. Conner received an additional charge of aggravated fleeing to elude a peace officer. They were taken to Markham Courthouse for a detention hearing.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was called in to help look for other weapons at the scene and investigate whether the individuals arrested on Wednesday were also suspects in other armed robberies throughout the region, including in Indiana.