Scammer sold stolen SUV in Des Plaines for $15,000: police

A Chicago man is facing charges after selling a stolen, inoperative SUV to someone in Des Plaines, police said.

Derrick Hill, 27, of the 500 block of East 50th Place, is charged with theft by deception, possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of a forged title.

Hill was arrested Sept. 22, more than two months after taking $15,000 from a Minnesota resident for the 2022 Toyota Highlander, police said in a news release.

The victim had come to Des Plaines on July 1 to buy the SUV, which had been advertised on Facebook Marketplace, police said. The buyer met Hill — who had given a fake name — in a parking lot near Oakton and Lee streets.

After paying Hill, the buyer discovered the SUV wouldn’t start. Hill fled in a different vehicle, police said.

The SUV had been reported stolen that day, police said.

DNA and palm prints in the SUV led investigators to Hill, who police said has a history of similar crimes.

Hill was arrested after showing up for a court hearing in Chicago on a different case, police said.