A Chicago man was charged with robbing two northwest suburban earlier this week.
Jeremy Wood, 36, was charged with bank robbery for robbing two separate TCF Bank branches inside Jewel-Osco stores — at 1500 S. Lee St. in Des Plaines on Tuesday and 2501 W. Schaumburg Road in Schaumburg on Wednesday, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday in U.S. District Court.
About 11:10 a.m. Wednesday, Wood entered the Des Plaines Jewel-Osco, and gave a TCF bank teller a note announcing the robbery, which claimed he had a gun, and demanded money from the teller’s drawer, according to the complaint. The teller then gave him about $840 in cash before he left.
Security footage showed that Wood took a taxicab to and from the bank, according to the complaint. The taxicab’s driver said they picked Wood up from the Comfort Suites O’Hare and took him to the Des Plaines Jewel-Osco, where Wood asked the driver to wait outside while he met with a friend.
The taxi driver was interviewed about his interaction with Wood, who he again encountered the next day when Wood requested to be picked up at the Super 8 Motel at 3160 N. River Road in River Grove, according to the complaint.
The driver picked Wood up and pretended not to know him from the day before, according to the complaint. Wood asked the driver to take him to a Motel 6 in Melrose Park so he could pick up a “money bag.” The driver called the taxicab’s dispatch service while Wood was inside to inform them the new fare was the bank robber from the previous day.
Wood got back into the taxicab and asked the driver to take him to 2507 W. Schaumburg Road in Schaumburg, according to the complaint. When they arrived, the driver noticed the address was next to the Jewel-Osco at 2501 W. Schaumburg Road. Wood asked the driver to wait in the parking lot for 5–10 minutes while he picked up a medication.
Wood entered the store and handed a TCF Bank teller a note announcing the robbery and demanding money, according to the complaint. Wood robbed about $626 from the bank branch before being subsequently arrested by Schaumburg police when he exited the store.
