A sledgehammer attack damaged two gaming machines at the Chill House restaurant in Frankfort early Thursday. Surveillance video showed two suspects wearing all black.
ABC7 Chicago reported that police were at the scene by 6:02 a.m., shortly after the reported 5:54 a.m. entry. It also did not state how much money was taken or mention a weekend benefit.
Other suburban businesses have also been targeted in video-gaming-machine burglaries.
A Statewide Surge in Smash-and-Grab Burglaries
The cash held inside video gambling terminals has made them an attractive target for organized burglary crews across the Chicago suburbs.
The numbers underscore the scale of the problem. Illinois Gaming Board records show licensed video gambling establishments statewide suffered 473 burglaries in 2025, resulting in more than $2.7 million in stolen cash, according to CDC Gaming Reports. Nearly half of those burglaries happened between October and December, the outlet noted. Illinois has licensed video gaming establishments and terminals statewide.
Suburban Police Departments Join Forces
The pattern of coordinated hits has drawn broader attention from law enforcement and businesses across the suburbs.
The pattern of attacks has continued in the suburbs, including another brazen hit in Green Oaks, where five masked robbers armed with sledgehammers and crowbars broke into a Gas N Wash station on September 9 and smashed six video gaming machines while a private security guard hired by the gaming company was inside the building, as Hoodline reported. That same gas station had been hit less than a month earlier. Individual arrests have happened before: in March, Oak Lawn and Worth police charged two 18-year-old Chicago men with multiple felony burglary counts tied to early-morning break-ins at southwest suburban restaurants, according to Fox 32 Chicago.
Business Owners Turn to Fogging Systems and Steel Shutters
Video gambling machines are present at restaurants, gas stations, bars and grills, making the repeated targeting especially painful for small operators.
Other suburbs are considering similar measures. Possible measures include heavy shielding and removing machines.
Possible measures include heavy shielding and removing machines. At Chill House, the machines—not the restaurant's other property—were the target.
The issue of video gambling has also entered city politics.
