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Chicago residents accuse cops of planting "bait trucks" filled with expensive shoes to lure thieves

In a statement, Norfolk Southern spokeswoman Susan Terpay said break-ins at rail yards in Southside Chicago have been increasing, and the operation "was intended to directly combat such unacceptable thefts."
Credit: MARTIN G. JOHNSON
Martin Johnson says police officers staged a fake arrest of a truck driver so they could leave a tractor trailer on the street and lure people to steal from it. Photo Credit: MARTIN G. JOHNSON

Some Chicago residents are outraged by a police operation that deployed a so-called "bait truck" to nab thieves in the city's Englewood neighborhood last week. Angry residents allege police from a major railroad line left tractor trailers filled with expensive merchandise to lure people into stealing, but police say the operation was necessary to bust thieves who have broken into cargo shipments in recent weeks.

The operation was conducted by the Norfolk Southern Railroad Police, which has jurisdiction over railroads operated by the Norfolk Southern railroad company, with assistance from the Chicago Police Department. In a statement, Norfolk Southern spokeswoman Susan Terpay said break-ins at rail yards in Southside Chicago have been increasing, and the operation "was intended to directly combat such unacceptable thefts."

Two videos taken by separate men at different times show a white tractor trailer parked at several locations around the neighborhood. Community activist Charles Mckenzie posted a video of a truck to Facebook on Aug. 2, showing an unmarked white tractor trailer parked under an overpass. Mckenzie says the trailer was apparently filled with expensive shoes. "I heard it was Nikes and red bottoms [Louboutins]," he said in an interview with CBS News.

Read more on cbsnews.com.

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