A Cook County man was arrested after allegedly posing as a home services worker and stealing $15,000 in cash once he gained access to an elderly woman’s home in Crystal Lake.
Anthony Miller, 42, of Schaumburg, was charged with theft by deception over $10,000, a Class 2 felony, and theft by deception involving a victim over 60, a Class 2 felony.
A criminal complaint filed in McHenry County Circuit Court alleges Miller obtained over $10,000 in cash by deception from a woman in Crystal Lake around 2:45 p.m. on December 27.
Miller posed as an employee of a company offering chimney inspection and driveway paving services, the complaint said.
The complaint said that Miller was not a legitimate service provider.
His actions of inducing the victim, an 89-year-old woman who lives in the 400 block of James Street in Crystal Lake, resulted in her allowing Miller entry to her residence, the complaint said.
Miller stole over $10,000 in cash once he was inside the woman’s home, the complaint said.
Prosecutors said Miller was working with an unidentified accomplice and stole $15,000, the Northwest Herald reported. He had no prearranged appointment for work on the woman’s home.
Miller was charged last week and appeared for an Initial Appearance Court hearing last Tuesday.
The charges are non-detainable under the Illinois SAFE-T Act and McHenry County Judge Cynthia Lamb released Miller with pre-trial conditions.
Those included him not leaving the state without court permission, not possessing firearms and being prohibited from going door-to-door soliciting work in residential areas in Illinois.
Miller was also ordered to be placed on GPS monitoring, have no contact with the victim and not come within two miles of her home.
Miller is scheduled to appear in court again on January 28 for a status of preliminary hearing and to review his pre-trial release conditions.