A woman returned to her house in the 500 block of W. Belden Jan. 4 at 6 p.m. and noticed her front door was forced open. She walked around her house and found her laptop, iPod, passport and some jewelry missing. Police had no leads.

A woman was riding a northbound Brown Line train near North Avenue Jan. 4 at 11:48 a.m. when a man approached her and said, “Is that your father?” and pointed at a man sitting in front of her. She got off at the next stop near 900 W. Fullerton and the offender followed her. He eventually pushed her and took her iPhone from her hand and fled. Two nearby women tried to stop him, but the offender threatened to push them onto the train tracks and said he would “Kick their asses.” They held him up long enough for police to arrive and take him into custody. The officers performed a search and recovered the iPhone. The man was transported to the 18th District police station where officers discovered the man had been arrested the day before for an assault. No charges had been filed at the time of the report.

A woman was working in a flower shop located in the 1600 block of N. Wells Jan. 3 at 11:50 a.m. when a man entered and started browsing. The woman noticed after 20 minutes that the man was gone but she never saw him exit. She went to an employee area on the second floor, where she noticed a back door that was usually locked had its lock broken off. A key was missing from its cylinder. She then went through a file cabinet where she keeps her belonging and found her iPod and several cigarettes missing. She noticed tissues and soap missing from another room. The woman looked out the back door and saw the offender walking a block away. The woman followed the offender and called police who detained him near North Avenue. A search of the offender revealed two rolls of Scott’s tissue that matched production dates from a full package of tissue back at the flower shop, a pump bottle of Dial soap and one pair of gloves. Police took the offender back to the 18th District for processing and asked him if they would find his fingerprints when they found the iPod. The offender responded, “I bought that stuff from a guy on the street for $15, then I noticed a girl following me … so I figured it was hot. [The iPod] had a tag on the back with a girl’s name, so I threw it. She was still following me when you guys stopped me.” Police were not able to locate the iPod, but the offender continued to talk to police, finally saying he took the toilet paper and Kleenex because he needed it, as he stays in a halfway house. He said he also took the iPod because he can get $20 for it and needs the money for rent, which is $400.

A woman was walking near the 500 block of W. Armitage Jan. 2 at 9:10 p.m. when a man walked up behind her and tugged her purse. The offender then pointed inside his hoodie at what appeared to be a handgun and told her to give him the purse. She released it, and the offender fled east on Armitage. Police toured the area, but did not locate the offender.

A woman was walking near the 500 block of N. Wells Jan. 2 at 8:09 p.m. with her friend when a man walked up, pointed a gun in her face and said, “Give me your f— purse.” The woman relinquished her purse containing $65 and miscellaneous credit cards and identification, and the man fled to a vehicle nearby. Police toured the area, but did not locate the offenders.

A woman was dancing at a bar located on the 800 block of N. Evergreen Jan. 2 at 2:20 a.m. when a man approached her and smacked her on the butt with her hands. She yelled at the man, and security for the establishment separated both parties. Police arrived and took the man in to custody and charged him with battery.

A man was waiting at a bar in the 100 block of W. Hubbard Jan. 1 at 12:25 a.m. when another man came up to him and punched him in the face with his fist and then ran away. Police arrived and toured the area, but did not find the offender. The victim was transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for treatment.