19-year-old man charged with Evanston car burglary

A 19-year-old man was charged with burglarizing a vehicle Sunday in north suburban Evanston.

Police responded about 1:35 a.m. to the back of an apartment building in the 2100 block of Maple Avenue, where a 21-year-old resident of the area reported two people checking vehicle door handles and entering them in the parking lot, according to Evanston police.

Officers found Tramel D. Santarrelli, of Riverdale, hiding under a tree in the 2500 block of Ridge Avenue, police said.

Santarrelli ran away from police but was stopped a short distance away, police said. He had loose change, two pairs of sunglasses and two personal checks that didn’t belong to him.

The man who reported the burglaries identified Santarrelli as one of the people he saw, police said.

Eleven vehicles in the immediate area appeared to have been burglarized, police said. They appeared to have been unlocked at the time of the burglaries.

Detectives also found a vehicle owner in the 2200 block of Sherman Avenue who said two personal checks were stolen from his unlocked vehicle, police said. The owner decided to proceed with criminal charges against Santarrelli.

Santarrelli was charged with one felony count of burglary to a motor vehicle, police said.

Santarrelli’s bond was set at $25,000 on Monday, and his next court appearance was scheduled for July 6 in north suburban Skokie, according to the Cook County sheriff’s office.