Three residents in southeast Elmhurst woke up Saturday, July 18, to find their cars had been entered overnight after a burglar hit unlocked vehicles on Cedar Avenue, Allison Street, and Crescent Avenue and then outran police and a K-9 unit.

The Elmhurst Police Department said officers responded around 4 a.m. to the 600 block of Cedar Avenue and the 400 block of Allison Street after a 911 caller reported a man breaking into parked cars. Surveillance video, later provided by a resident and released publicly by EPD, shows the suspect opening a car door on the street before spotting a squad car approaching with lights and siren activated. He bolted across a front lawn, startling a rabbit, and vaulted a fence into a residential backyard.

Officers searched the area on foot with a K-9. The dog tracked the suspect's scent south to the Canadian National railroad tracks that cut through the neighborhood, but the man escaped.

Police determined the suspect had entered three vehicles parked on public streets: one in the 600 block of Cedar Avenue, one in the 400 block of Allison Street, and one in the 300 block of Crescent Avenue. All three were unlocked. No forced entry was reported.

No arrest had been made as of Sunday, July 20. EPD has not released a physical description of the suspect beyond the video footage.

Not an isolated incident

The July 18 burglaries follow a pattern. A late-June 2026 Elmhurst Patch newsletter reported that EPD had handled multiple overnight car burglaries and attempted break-ins across other Elmhurst neighborhoods in June.

EPD urged residents in a public statement to lock their vehicles and stay alert during early-morning hours. The department called on neighbors to make their blocks "a hard target for thieves" by keeping cars locked, especially those parked on the street overnight.

What residents can do

EPD's advisory boils down to three steps: lock vehicles every night, remove valuables from sight, and report suspicious activity during early-morning hours. Residents with information about the July 18 incident or surveillance footage from the area are encouraged to contact the Elmhurst Police Department.

The investigation remains open.