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Teen Whose City Sticker Design Was Disqualified Arrested For Driving Stolen Van

CHICAGO (STMW) -- A Logan Square teenager who first made headlines in 2012 when he designed the winning city sticker, only to have it pulled over concerns it contained gang signs, was arrested Tuesday for driving a stolen van.

Herbert Pulgar, 18, was charged with felony possession of a stolen motor vehicle and also faces several traffic citations, according to Chicago Police.

About 3:40 a.m. Tuesday, officers spotted the driver of a Chevrolet Astro van commit a minor traffic violation, police said. They ran the license plate and discovered the van had been reported stolen.

Officers tried to pull the van over, and the teen tried to flee, but he was arrested, police said.

Pulgar, of the 3100 block of West Logan Boulevard, is scheduled to appear in bond court Wednesday.

In 2011, when Pulgar was a 15-year-old freshman at Lawrence Hall Youth Services, he submitted the winning design for Chicago's 2012-13 city sticker contest.

However, in early 2012, City Clerk Susana Mendoza later pulled the design after authorities said one of its elements resembled gang signs.

City Sticker Design and art book
The hands depicted on Herbert Pulgar's design for Chicago city vehicle stickers appear almost identical to those in an art book supplied by his teacher, although some critics have said the hands are flashing gang symbols. (Credit: CBS)

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2015. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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