CROWN HEIGHTS [CHI] — An incident with a man passing counterfeit $50 bills to Kingston Avenue stores, had the tables turned on Shomrim when an apathetic police force, led by an officer and a sergeant, turned the story upside down and accused them of playing cops and robbers, while letting the suspect go. Disturbing video footage tells this bizarre story.
The incident began at around 5:30pm in Sweet Expressions where the man, a black male in his 40’s, attempted to make a purchase for a single dollar item with a $50 bill. The clerk followed store policy and used a security marker on the bill which indicated the bill was a positive fake. Not sure what to do the clerk asked her manager and she chased the man out of her store.
Undeterred the man continued to Mendy’s restaurant and attempted again to pass the fake currency, and he was caught there too and chased away.
By this time a manager of the hosiery store on Kingston called Shomrim and informed them of the incidents. A number of Shomrim volunteers who were on the avenue spotted the man leaving Areleh’s Bagels, where he already managed to slip the fake bill, and the cashier gave him change. Once the suspect walked out of the shop he started running down President Street, with Shomrim hot on his trail.
At the corner of Albany Avenue the man attempted to jump over a fence into the yard of a private house and hide, only he got tangled on the fence and give up. Once stopped more volunteers started arriving on scene and police was called.
Before the 911 call was completed a pair of police officers on foot patrol arrived on scene and the situation quickly turned south. One of the officers, Officer Driggs instantly became confrontational with Shomrim, asking “Who are you guys? Who do you think you are? You don’t have the right to start chasing people down.”
Meanwhile the officer’s partner took the suspects information down, and attempted to calm the situation down, but officer Driggs would hear none of it. Shomrim asked for a sergeant to respond, and the situation got even worse.
Sargent Kelley arrived on scene, and officer Driggs told him that he observed Shomrim “jumping out of a car and jumping [the suspect], and when I approached this [Shomrim] started flipping out.” The Shomrim volunteer asked the sergeant if he can tell his side of story and he simply said “no.”
By now a number of Shomrim Coordinators responded to the scene in an attempt to diffuse the confrontation, and salvage the arrest only things got decidedly worse with Sgt. Kelley making it his point to tell Shomrim they have no right to do anything they do.
He demanded that Shomrim bring the store manager to the scene with fake bill, and when he arrived police interrogated him. The small squadron of rookie police officers led by their sergeant then descended on the fake $50 bill and decided it was not a fake.
Police then let the suspect go, and told the manager of the store he can leave as well, but police did not return the fake bill to him.
“If it wasn’t a fake bill why didn’t they give it back to the store manager” asked a Shomrim volunteer. “Instead of belittling us and the work we do, next time it might help to take a second to listen rather than try to cover it up.”
VIDEO: Police Harrass Shomrim at Counterfeit Incident (Click Here)
Crown Heights Exposed 
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