Police: Theft suspect dies of apparent overdose during arrest

A theft suspect died of an apparent drug overdose after being arrested Tuesday afternoon in the West Side Austin neighborhood.

At 4:32 p.m., officers responded to a call of a battery in the 4600 block of West North Avenue and found a handcuffed theft suspect experiencing a “health issue,” according to Chicago Police.

Security officers had detained 23-year-old Donnell J. Burns and 30-year-old Veronica Calhoun after they tried to return stolen merchandise, according to police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office. The suspects resisted arrest.

The officers called paramedics and learned one of the suspects had used narcotics, police said.

Burns, of the East Garfield Park neighborhood, was taken to Norwegian American Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 5:51 p.m., authorities said. An autopsy Wednesday did not rule on cause and manner of death, with results pending further investigation.

Calhoun, a Broadview resident, was charged with one misdemeanor count of retail theft, police said.