Police: Man stole packages while out on bond in Riverside

A man who was charged with burglary in Riverside last month was arrested again Monday for allegedly stealing packages from porches in the western suburb.

Authorities were called to the 200 block of East Burlington in Riverside at 2:03 p.m. for reports of a package theft, according to a statement from Riverside police. A witness told police a male had picked up a package from a front porch, ripped it open and continued walking east.

After a search lasting about four minutes, officers spotted a man matching the suspect description in front of a home in the 300 block of Herrick Road, police said.

The officers immediately recognized him as 21-year-old Jean Carlos Deleon, who was arrested for burglary in Riverside Oct. 7, police said.

At the time of the October arrest, Deleon had been out on bond and wearing an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet for a previous retail theft charge, police said. After the Oct. 7 charge of burglary, he was released on bond for the second time.

On Monday, officers detained Deleon and brought over a witness, who positively identified him as the package thief, police said. He was also carrying property from the stolen package at the time.

Officers canvassed the area and discovered that a home in the 100 block of East Burlington also had a UPS package stolen from it, and the contents of that package — shoes and a music box — were found in a bush in the same block, according to police.

Earlier Monday, Deleon went to the Riverside Police Department lobby to try to claim his property, police said. However, the property he was trying to claim was allegedly stolen in his previous burglaries, and his request was denied.

He became angry, left the lobby and was stealing packages along Burlington within 20 minutes, police said. When he was arrested for the package thefts, he became belligerent and refused to cooperate with the investigation.

He also damaged his holding cell during the booking process, according to police.

Deleon, who lives in the 5200 block of West 25th Street in Cicero, is charged with two counts of misdemeanor theft and one count of criminal damage to property, police said.

He was being held for a third bond hearing, and Riverside police have asked to Cook County state’s attorney’s office to revoke his previous bond for the Oct. 7 burglary charge, police said.