By Ted Gregory
Chicago Tribune
NORTH RIVERSIDE, Ill. — Police shot a man who tried to rob a bank in North Riverside on Tuesday afternoon, then ran into a nearby store and held an elderly man at knifepoint, authorities said.
The shooting occurred about 1:30 p.m. at 2208 Harlem Ave., the site of a Burlington Coat Factory store, said North Riverside Mayor Hubert Hermanek Jr.
According to a statement from North Riverside police, a man who had attempted to rob a TCF Bank used an older man as a “human shield” as officers approached. Police said the elderly man was able to pull away, allowing officers to shoot.
The suspect, described only as a 41-year-old from Chicago, was taken to a local hospital. Authorities didn’t describe his injuries.
Frank Tortorich, a witness in the Burlington Coat Factory at the time of the shooting, estimated there were 50 to 60 people in the store.
A spokesman for the Illinois State Police said the agency’s Public Integrity Task Force is investigating, but he declined to elaborate.
Tribune wires contributed.
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