Juvenile charged in connection with Riverside 7-Eleven robbery

RIVERSIDE - Riverside Police Wednesday arrested and charged a 17-year-old male juvenile from Chicago in connection with the robbery that occurred at the 7-Eleven on Sept. 6.

Immediately following the robbery, detectives learned that a trio of men involved in the incident were wanted in several other robberies throughout the south and north suburbs.

On Sept. 8, Riverside police were notified that Burbank authorities had arrested one of the offenders, a juvenile, who was turned over to Chicago police on three counts of robbery that occurred in the city, police said.

Riverside detectives interviewed the juvenile, who confessed to the robbery in Riverside. He is currently being held at a juvenile detention center in Chicago. The offender would not provide information on his partners in the robbery, police said.

The juvenile ran a sophisticated robbery and armed robbery crew that is responsible for armed robberies of two Bedford Park businesses as well as robberies in Palos Park, Hickory Hills, Northbrook and Chicago. The group also committed a robbery in Addison the same day as the Riverside robbery, police said.

This offender has an extensive juvenile criminal history, including violent criminal acts. Police continue to work leads to apprehend the remaining offenders.

“This is a textbook case of officers responding immediately, collecting evidence, and contacting detectives who also immediately responded to the scene and did immediate follow up and networked with other police agencies,” Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel said in a statement. “All that quick action allowed us to make an arrest within three days of the robbery.”