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Arlington Heights police identify suspect in theft of 10 vehicles from dealership

Arlington Heights police have identified a suspect in the theft of as many as 10 high-end vehicles from a dealership on Dundee Road last weekend.

The suspect, who hasn't been charged yet, was apprehended Sunday afternoon in South suburban Harvey, where one of the stolen vehicles from the Arlington Nissan dealership was also located, police said.

An employee reported the burglary to police at 7:30 a.m. Sunday after a service bay entrance door window was found broken and key fobs stolen from the business at 1100 W. Dundee Road. It's unclear exactly when all of the vehicles were taken, but two of the cars, including the Land Rover SUV that ended up in Harvey, were stolen later Sunday morning, authorities said.

That's when a Chicago Police Department helicopter tracked the moving Range Rover all the way to Harvey, where the driver bailed, ran into a backyard and was taken into custody by Harvey police.

Arlington Heights police are still gathering evidence in pursuit of filing charges against the driver, who is believed to have worked in tandem with other people to steal the vehicles.

"We hope to make greater strides in not only charging this person, but perhaps identifying a greater organization that's behind this," Arlington Heights police Cmdr. Petar Milutinovic said Friday.

Sunday's case is the latest break-in at a car dealership on Dundee, which is home to other car sellers that have been targeted in recent months, likely because of their accessibility to Route 53, Milutinovic said.

In late March, three people broke into Napleton's Arlington Heights Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, which is across the street from Arlington Nissan, but no vehicles were stolen.

Police have been talking with dealership employees on the Dundee corridor to help tighten their security.

"We're making efforts to offer suggestions based on what other communities see as successful and work with the dealerships to prevent these types of occurences," Milutinovic said. "It's an ongoing criminal pattern."

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