A routine trip to Orland Square Mall turned into a multi-town police chase Thursday after a woman reported her purse was violently snatched in the parking lot. The suspect sped off, led officers into Chicago, crashed, tried to bolt on foot and was ultimately taken into custody, according to police.
The incident comes as Orland Park has shifted many patrol officers to 12‑hour shifts in a bid to boost visible coverage along busy commercial corridors and business districts. Village leaders say the move is meant to get more officers posted where incidents actually happen, while also trimming overtime costs. The scheduling shakeup and the police department’s early results were reported as the change.
The pursuit and arrest
Orland Park police say the trouble started when a woman told officers Thursday that a suspect forcibly grabbed her purse in the parking lot at 288 Orland Square Drive, then took off in a vehicle before police could arrive.
Midlothian officers later spotted the vehicle near 159th Street and Laramie Avenue and followed it toward 111th Street and Interstate 57, where Chicago police joined the pursuit. The chase ended on the 3300 block of South Wood Street after the vehicle crashed and the driver bailed out, running on foot, police said…