Local police thwart suspected car thieves

They were driving a stolen car and had bag of keys to other vehicles

Two Chicago men have been charged with vehicle theft after their respective stories about what they were doing near an auto dealership in Burlington at 2:40 a.m. Saturday unraveled.

Pierre M. Tolliver, 28, and Edell Simmons, 24, were both charged Monday in Racine County Circuit Court with operating a motor vehicle without owner’s consent – a Class H felony. Tolliver was also charged with obstructing an officer and cited for driving with an invalid license.

According to the criminal complaint filed in their cases, a City of Burlington police officer on patrol became suspicious of a vehicle – with its lights on and motor running – parked at a shopping center at the corner of Teut Road and Milwaukee Avenue.

The driver, Tolliver, who was on his cell phone at the time, told the officer he had attended a basketball game in Milwaukee and had gotten lost in Burlington trying to find a gas station.

Upon further questioning, Tolliver allegedly told the officer he was trying to meet up with a friend who was driving a van with the basketball team. Tolliver also allegedly told the officer he had lost his identification.

After running records check on Tolliver’s name, the officers learned he did not have a valid driver’s license. The officers then asked Tolliver to call his friend to come and drive the car.

Officers also asked
Tolliver if he owned the car he was driving, to which he allegedly answered, “no” and said it belonged to his friend’s girlfriend.

A short time later Simmons came running up to the vehicle from the south. Simmons allegedly told an officer he was coming from the house of a girl he met at the basketball game in Kenosha. He didn’t, however, know where the girl lived. He also was not driving a van with a basketball team, as Tolliver had said.

Because of the conflicting stories, officers suspected the two may have been in the process of committing a crime. They asked Tolliver permission to search the car, to which he agreed.

Officers allegedly found a wallet containing Tolliver’s identification, and an Illinois license plate that was expired and registered to Simmons.

In the trunk of the car, officers allegedly found several plastic bags containing car keys and remotes. Many of the keys had tags on them similar to the type used by auto dealerships. The officers estimated there were at least 50 keys to several different models and makes of vehicles in the trunk.

Tolliver denied any knowledge of the keys in the trunk. Officers used the vehicle identification number on the car Tolliver was driving to learn that it had been reported stolen.

An officer checked the Miller Motors dealership lot across the street, but didn’t notice anything suspicious.

Both men made their initial appearances in court Monday. An official found probable cause that Tolliver was involved in a crime and set $1,000 cash bond. A preliminary hearing in his case is set for Oct. 31.

The court also ruled probable cause in Simmon’s case and set bond at $500 cash. His preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 6.