Three charged with smash-and-grab burglary of Apple store in Naperville
Three people have been charged in connection with a November burglary where a stolen car was used to crash into the Apple store in downtown Naperville.
And the vehicle they allegedly used to drive away has been linked to burglaries throughout the suburbs and in Rockford, according to DuPage County court records.
Christie K. Lopez, 30, of the 900 block of East 83rd Street in Chicago; David J. Fultz, 30, of the 500 block of Fisher Avenue in Rockford; and a boy from Maywood are each charged with felony burglary, theft and criminal damage to property, according to a news release from Naperville police.
“This was a very brazen and high-profile burglary, and we’ve had residents asking about arrests since the day it happened,” Police Chief Jason Arres said. “This just goes to show that investigations can take some time, but we do get results. The persistence of our detectives is unmatched, and we’re committed to catching anyone who commits a crime in our town.”
The burglary happened around 6:05 a.m. on Nov. 6. Officers found a beige Hyundai Elantra halfway through the glass storefront, unoccupied and running.
Three male offenders had entered the store and stole about $34,000 worth of devices, according to police. They left in a Dodge Journey.
The store sustained about $370,000 in damage, according to a prosecutor’s petition to detain Fultz pretrial.
The petition states that 37 iPhones, three laptop computers and one iPad were stolen. It also says the Elantra was stolen at an apartment complex in Lisle, not far from a hotel where the defendants were staying.
According to the petition, police believe Fultz and the others burglarized a liquor store in Lisle before the Apple burglary by throwing a rock through a glass window. Charges have not been filed in the liquor store case.
The petition states the Dodge Journey has been tied to burglaries in Downers Grove, Glendale Heights, Countryside, Round Lake Beach, Island Lake and Rockford.
In addition, it states Fultz was arrested on Dec. 29 in Palos Hills in connection with a burglary at a restaurant.
The charges were filed on March 5. Lopez was arrested on March 13 and Fultz on Wednesday. Lopez is being held at Stateville Correctional Center on a charge he violated parole. Fultz will be released pretrial, according to court records.
Lopez was also charged Wednesday with burglarizing the Pik-N-Go Liquors store in Bloomingdale on Dec. 16, 2023, according to court records. He is accused of throwing a landscaping rock through a glass door and stealing more than $10,000 worth of liquor and cigarettes, according to the charges.