Police Arrest Suspect in String of Residential Burglaries

Grayslake Police detectives tracked down a man suspected of committing brazen home burglaries, often while residents were still at home.

Xavier I. Cruz, 18, of 536 Pheasant Ct., Grayslake, was located and taken into custody by Grayslake detectives this week at approximately 9 p.m. March 22. Cruz is charged with two counts of attempted burglary to a motor vehicle and one count of residential burglary, police said in a statement.

All three incidents occurred January 17 in the Chesapeake Farms subdivision in Grayslake in the early morning hours.

"We wanted to get him into custody as soon as possible so residents could feel safe," said Grayslake Police Cmdr. Matt McCutcheon.

Police evidence technicians recovered physical evidence from several additional burglary scenes from homes in the West Trail and Estates of Eastlake subdivisions and have submitted those items to the Northern Illinois Police Crime Lab, he said.

"We are hopeful and we believe that those results will tie Cruz to additional residential burglaries in the village," McCutcheon said Friday. "If so, there may be additional charges coming."

In light of these burglaries, residents in the Chesapeake Farms subdivision bonded together to form their own neighborhood watch group. They also set up a page to share information on Facebook.

Cruz was transported to the Lake County Courthouse for a bond hearing on Thursday, March 24. Bond was set at $25,000 and he was unable to post bond.

"It looks like he acted alone in committing the crimes, although he may have had help trying to get away," McCutcheon said.

He praised the work of the detectives in breaking the case.

"I am proud of the work of our detectives," McCutcheon said. "They had to put in long hours and did more neighborhood surveillance than usual. They did a great job on a difficult case."