Residents of an Illinois home were still inside when someone entered through an unlocked rear door and took credit cards from a purse in their kitchen, according to Elmhurst Police. Within hours, alerts began arriving for purchases made with those cards, giving detectives a trail that would eventually lead to a Chicago man.
The burglary occurred at approximately 3 a.m. on September 14 at a single-family home in the 500 block of South Hawthorne Avenue. Police determined that one or more unknown suspects entered through the unlocked rear door and took several credit cards while the residents were home.
At approximately 6 a.m., the victims began receiving alerts about unauthorized purchases in Chicago and Harwood Heights. Detectives subsequently visited three gas stations where police say the stolen cards had been used to make a total of $314 in purchases.
Surveillance footage from those businesses showed two men using the cards before leaving in a silver BMW SUV with no license plates displayed, according to police. Investigators would eventually identify 34-year-old Michael A. Geigel as one of the men they say was recorded making three unauthorized purchases.
Silver BMW Gives Detectives Another Lead
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Elmhurst Police said detectives identified Geigel through law enforcement databases and a review of previous police reports. An automated license plate reader search then produced additional information involving a silver BMW SUV that Geigel had driven during previous police contacts.
Police say that the BMW traveled through South Elmhurst for approximately one hour and 15 minutes overnight on September 12, two days before the residential burglary. Unlike the vehicle captured after the stolen-card purchases, the BMW had license plates displayed during that earlier trip.
Detectives also learned that Geigel and another man entered an Elmhurst Shell gas station that night and made a purchase, according to police. The department said the second man stole a pair of gloves from the business, but its release does not accuse Geigel of that theft.
Police Arrest Geigel in BMW Weeks Later
Detectives located Geigel on September 29 in the 2600 block of South California Avenue in Chicago. Police say he was found in the silver BMW SUV and taken into custody.
Geigel was charged with three counts of Class 3 felony identity theft and transported to the DuPage County Judicial Center for First Appearance Court. Police have not accused Geigel of personally entering the Elmhurst home, and detectives said their investigation remains active as they work to identify additional suspects involved in the incident.
Guessing Headlights also searched the Elmhurst Jail Inmates page for additional information about Geigel but was unable to locate further details among the information available at the time of the search. Elmhurst Police’s release states that Geigel was transported to the DuPage County Judicial Center, so the unsuccessful Elmhurst jail search should not be interpreted as establishing his current custody or release status.