Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz said his family is still dealing with the repercussions of a carjacking that happened in January and said recent criticism against him for what happened that night is not fair.
“It was horrifying for me to receive a call from your daughter crying that her car was just taken from her when she was standing right next to it,” Glotz said.
No one was hurt and the car was recovered a few days later in Calumet City.
But Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones questioned why Glotz drove with a baseball bat in his truck and two members of the Tinley Park Police Department to Calumet City the night the car was stolen.
“It was a blatant abuse of power and this should be investigated by the state police to make sure that this doesn’t happen again,” Jones said.
According to Glotz, he contacted Tinley Park dispatch and gave his name and said his daughter’s car was stolen.
“I never referenced myself as mayor in any of my phone calls,” Glotz said.
Glotz said the automaker notified them where the car was located and that a police communication network spread the word about the stolen car.
He said he carries a bat in his vehicle because he plays sports.
“I wasn’t going there to confront the people that stole the car from my daughter,” Glotz said. “I was going there to give my daughter’s spare car keys to the police officers so that they could look for it.”
Glotz takes issue with the criticism and calls it political.
“I’m shocked to hear now him having three months later a totally different story than what happened,” Glotz said. “So it’s unfortunate.”
Tinley Park is hosting a carjacking safety seminar Thursday evening in partnership with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office. It’s a chance for attendees to learn tips on how to avoid being a victim and to learn about vehicle trackers.
“I hope that we can inform people and give them more tools that they didn’t have to make sure that they’re safe,” Glotz said.
