The former head of the public library in south suburban Markham has been indicted on federal charges alleging he embezzled nearly $800,000 from the cash-strapped town over more than a decade and spent it on personal items such as tickets, auto repairs and home mortgage payments. Xavier Menzies, 51, of Chicago Heights, was charged in an indictment made public Friday with four counts of wire fraud.

The city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications said in a news release at 8:11 p.m. that the area was closed to incoming vehicular traffic from Division to 18th Street and from DuSable Lake Shore Drive to Halsted Street, citing “public safety due to large car caravans.”