Two men charged with felony retail theft of 22 bottles of vodka from Elburn Jewel

ELBURN – Two men were charged with felony retail theft after they filled a shopping cart with $659.78 worth of alcoholic beverages at Jewel-Osco and left without paying July 3, according to a news release and Elburn Police Chief Nicholas Sikora.

The store manager and several witnesses called police, Sikora said.

The two men left Jewel-Osco, 800 N. Main St., Elburn, at 3:20 p.m. after allegedly putting 22 bottles of Tito’s Vodka into a vehicle, Sikora said in an email.

The bottles were in three cases of six each that had been stacked at a sales display and four individual bottles, according to Sikora’s email.

The pair allegedly also took other assorted food and beverage items: Pure Leaf Tea, a fruit tray, pistachios, caramels, chocolates and watermelons for an additional cost of $124.44, according to Sikora’s email.

It made the total value of the items taken $784.22, according to Sikora’s email.

Sikora said he didn’t know if the pair were planning a Fourth of July party.

Rufus L. Burns III, 54, of the 1200 block of North Menard Avenue, Chicago, was charged with felony retail theft of items valued at more than $300 and having been previously convicted of retail theft, according to police and court records.

Burns was being held in the Kane County jail on $24,400 bond.

Curtis Davis, 55, of the 1100 block of North Monitor Avenue, Chicago, was charged with felony retail theft of items valued at more than $300, as well as misdemeanor charges of resisting a police officer, reckless driving, driving with a suspended license and driving an uninsured vehicle, according to police and court records.

Davis was being held in the Kane County jail on $24,400 bond.

Police attempted to stop them, but Davis pulled into a business in the 200 block of South Main Street, driving in a reckless manner with pedestrians present, according to a news release from Sikora.

Davis ran away but was taken into custody a short time later with the assistance of Kane County Sheriff’s deputies in the area of the Elburn Metra parking lot, according to the release.

The most serious charge both men face are one count each of theft of items valued at more than $300, Class 3 felonies punishable by two to five years in prison and fines up to $25,000 if convicted.

The other theft charges are Class 4 felonies, punishable by one to three years in prison and fines up to $25,000, if convicted.