The Great Soap Caper

An amusing west side tale:

• A Chicago Police captain chased and apprehended a man who allegedly tried to steal boxes of hotel soaps from a semi truck early Friday on the West Side.

  The captain was patrolling an area near South Cicero and West Fifth avenues -- just south of the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290) -- when he saw a man who appeared to be stealing from a parked semi truck about 3:15 a.m., police said.

  The captain confronted the man, and eventually pepper sprayed him when he used a chain to avoid being handcuffed. The man then attempted to flee, but the captain captured him about a block away, police said.

  Further investigation revealed the truck was carrying boxes of hotel soaps, according to police, who said truck thieves often don’t know what the trucks are carrying ahead of time.

Captains making arrests is one thing. Stealing hundreds of bars of soap? Why?