Evanston Police arrested a “midnight auto burglar” last Wednesday, Evanston Police Department Cmdr. Tom Guenther said.

Police responded to a citizen call about a burglary in progress on the 1900 block of Brown Avenue, Guenther said. Officers arriving on the scene discovered four vehicles parked in the street with smashed windows. A witness described the offender to police, who began searching the area.

Officers located a suspect matching the witness’s description walking in the north alley of the 1900 block of Emerson Street, Guenther said. As officers approached, the man ran away.

Shortly afterward, officers heard a metal gate slam. Police continued to search the area and noticed a residence with a metal gate ajar, Guenther said. Officers searched the home and located the suspect in the basement. He was later identified as Gregory Tyrone Jackson, 21.

Occupants of the home told officers that Jackson was a friend of theirs who had left their home sometime around midnight that night, Guenther said.

Officers found a CD and a watch in Jackson’s pants pocket. The items were taken from a Chrysler 300, one of the four cars originally discovered by police. A garage door opener and loose change were also reported missing from the burglarized cars. These items were not found, Guenther said.

Jackson originally supplied officers with a false name, possibly because he knew he had active arrest warrants, Guenther said.

Jackson has been charged with one count of auto burglary, three counts of criminal damage to a vehicle and one count of obstructing justice. He will appear at 9 a.m. Friday in District Court in Skokie.

– Mike WALTON