2 charged with pickpocketing customers at Park Ridge restaurant

A man and woman have been charged with pickpocketing multiple customers at a restaurant in north suburban Park Ridge.

Keith Johnson, 49, of the 1200 block of West 74th Street in Chicago, was charged with one felony count of identity theft and one felony county of unlawful possession of credit cards, police said. Tammy Demiles, 41, of the 8700 block of South Sangamon Street in Chicago, was charged with two felony counts of identity theft and one felony count of unlawful possession of credit cards.

Park Ridge police responded to a call of a theft at a restaurant at 11:42 a.m. Thursday in the 0-100 block of South Northwest Highway, police said. Witnesses there told them that someone had possibly stolen a female’s wallet from her purse before leaving with an accomplice.

Based on knowledge from previous thefts at the same restaurant, detectives went to a retail store in Niles to look for the two suspects, police said. Upon arrival, they saw two people matching the descriptions of the suspects buying something with the female’s credit card.

Before detectives arrested the two suspects, Johnson had charged $600 to the credit card and Demiles had charged $2000, police said.

Detectives were able to connect Demiles to a theft that happened at the same restaurant on Jan. 17, police said. She had made a $1600 purchase at the same retail store.

Johnson and Demiles are awaiting bond hearings, police said.