Crime & Safety

Woman Caught Stealing Scrap Metal Charged After Giving Cops Fake Name

Cops say woman and friend were loading large pieces of metal into their car.

A man and woman were caught stealing large pieces of scrap metal from an Oak Lawn tool manufacturing company, according to police reports.

Oak Lawn police were called about a theft involving a man and woman at Meyer Tool, 4601 Southwest Highway, around 11 p.m. Saturday

When police arrived and approached a couple sitting in a car that matched the description given, the man walked away while the woman remained in the vehicle. Officers said the man told them he was taking the steel for scrap, but did not have permission to be on the property.

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The woman gave her name as “Lisa D. VanDermyde” and told police that she lived with the man, police said.

The man’s name came up clean when police ran his name through the computer, according to the report. Officers said that no record was found on the woman that matched her name and birth date.

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After several tries, the woman finally admitted to police that she was Denise M. Welch, 45, of Burbank, the report said. Officers asked the man to verify the woman’s name, and although he lived with the woman for several weeks, he didn’t know her last name, police said.

When the woman’s name turned up on police records, Welch was taken to the Oak Lawn police station where she could be fingerprinted to obtain her true identity, police said.

An employee told police he was not authorized to sign a criminal complaint and could not find someone in the company to sign it. Photos were taken of the man and he was released pending criminal charges.

The employee positively identified Welch and she was charged with obstruction of justice. She is schedueld to appear in court Sept. 26 at the Bridgeview Court House.


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