On the morning of Nov. 7, a man was dropping off his son at Oscar Mayer Elementary School, 2250 N. Clifton Ave, when the student told his father that he observed what appeared to be a grenade by the rear entrance of the school. After taking a look, the man confirmed that the object did seem to be a grenade, and school officials were immediately contacted, at which point teachers and students were relocated to the other side of the building.

Upon arriving at Mayer, personnel from the police department’s bomb squad determined that the object was in fact a camouflage-colored marijuana grinder shaped to resemble a grenade.

Children and staff were allowed to go back into their classrooms at around 9 a.m., and a visual inspection of the school revealed that there were no other suspicious items in the building.

The foreman of a construction site on the 800 block of West Blackhawk Street told police that about $2,000 worth of copper fittings were stolen from the site sometime between the afternoon of Nov. 4 and the morning of Nov. 7.

Police at the scene were unable to identify the offenders’ entry point into the premises, and a check for fingerprints was ruled out because the site was covered in construction dust. The looted fittings were taken from the eighth floor of the building under construction.

Police arrested Clarence Venson, of the 3500 block of West Van Buren Street, after he attempted to rob a man on the 1100 block of North Wells Street on the evening of Nov. 2.

A 42-year-old man told police that Venson, 26, had approached him and told him to hand over his belongings. When the man refused, Venson allegedly produced a shiny object — possibly a knife — and pointed it at the victim, again demanding that the victim give up his possessions.

The man refused and, fearing that the suspect was carrying a gun, started to walk away, at which point the Venson also fled.

After being given a description of the offender, police toured the area and were able to locate and detain Venson on the 100 block of West Elm Street. Venson was then transported to the 18th District police station. Upon conducting a custodial search, officers were unable to locate a weapon on Venson.

After spending the day at the Horseshoe Casino in Indiana, an off-duty police officer was walking up the back porch entrance of his home on the 600 block of West Division Street at around 2:35 a.m. on Nov. 7 when a man came up behind him, brandished a blue steel handgun and stating “I’m going to blow your f****** head off, give me your money.”

The officer handed over $1,800 in cash that he had in his wallet, and the suspect got into the passenger seat of a dark-colored vehicle — possibly a Ford Crown Victoria, the officer said — and drove away eastbound on Division Street.

Upon investigating, police found footage from a pod camera at Halsted Street and Division that showed the officer’s car being followed through the intersection by the vehicle used by the suspect.

An employee of the Holy Name Cathedral, 730 N. Wabash Ave., told police that someone stole a van and a laptop computer from the church sometime on Nov. 1.

Officers responding to the burglary call observed security camera footage which showed an unknown man walking through the halls of the building.

The van, a 2011 Toyota Sienna, was parked across the street from the cathedral at the time of the incident.

According to a Chicago Police Department news release, on Nov. 2, officers arrested a man suspected of being involved in two separate cases of criminal sexual abuse and unlawful restraint.

In both instances, the offender approached women walking alone, made small talk with them and then forced an unsolicited “restraining type of hug” in an attempt to make sexual advances.

The incidents occurred at 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 22 on the 700 block of West Fullerton Avenue and at 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 2 on the 2000 block of North Bissell Street. The release did not include the man’s name or details on the nature of his arrest.