Men from Western Springs and Clarendon Hills were charged with retail theft in two recent incidents at the village-owned Oak Brook Golf Club, 2606 York Road.
John Tuerk, 72, of the 600 block of 50th Place, Western Springs, was charged at 6:19 p.m. May 6 with retail theft under $300 after reportedly taking a golf club from the pro shop at the Golf Club. Tuerk was a multi-year employee at the Golf Club at the time of the incident and was terminated from employment at the time of his arrest, said Village Manager Greg Summers.
“A routine inventory check revealed a missing putter,’ Summers said. “Review of the pro shop cameras revealed direct footage of the theft in progress.”
Paul J Schranz, 63, of the 400 block of Chicago Avenue, Clarendon Hills, was charged with retail theft after reportedly taking a Taylormade Stealth 2+ driver golf club valued at $629 in a May 10 incident.
Oak Brook police responded the morning of May 11 to the Golf Club for a delayed retail theft. While reviewing video surveillance on site, the responding officer saw the offender enter the Golf Club pro shop at 3:36 p.m. May 10, select the Taylormade Stealth 2+ driver golf club, place that club near the front counter, make a cash transaction with the cashier for a range token, pick up the club and exit the store without paying for it, police said.
They said exterior surveillance cameras showed a 4-door gray/silver pickup truck enter the parking lot at 3:34 p.m. and leave the camera view just before the offender entered the store. No other vehicles were observed entering the parking lot at the time just before the offender entered the shop, police said.
The officer checked an automated license plate reader system at the Golf Club parking lot and discovered a matching pick-up truck entering the parking lot at 3:34 pm. That vehicle was registered to Schranz on a matching Toyota Tacoma. A driver’s license image was obtained and resembled the subject who took the merchandise, police said. Just before the vehicle exited the parking lot, it stopped in the parking lot and the driver exited to place an unknown item into the truck bed.
Detectives went to the registered address of the vehicle and served a search warrant. Schranz was located and taken into custody. The Toyota Tacoma was found in the garage of the residence with the Taylormade Stealth 2+ driver in the truck bed, police said.
“The Village has instituted a new level of controls and oversight that have enabled us to quickly identify losses and pursue those leads in a timely fashion, most recently generating two arrests for theft from the Golf Club within days of occurrence,” Summers said. “These tightened security controls, along with other policy enforcement, have enabled the Club to generate the funds necessary to reinvest in new improvements requested by our members and guests.”
The new controls and oversight were prompted by an internal audit in 2023, revealing significant losses over several years at the Golf Club.
“I can confidently say that the lax past procedures and controls created a culture that led to the massive prior losses,” Village President Larry Herman said. “We have rectified those deficiencies and implemented multiple new levels of controls and accountability that address the problem.”
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
