UPDATE 12 September, 2013: The following was posted in our comments section.
My name is Jim LoBianco. I am the Executive Director of StreetWise. The agency has all of our legitimate vendor’s photos on file. We have not been contacted by the Chicago Police; however, after reading this post I called the 19th District and offered them access to our database as well as our full cooperation. I do know that the vendor assigned to that location is a male, white. Nonetheless, StreetWise has spent twenty years working with police and businesses to address issues and concerns and will do so in this case should the offender be affiliated with our agency. StreetWise has zero tolerance for crime. As a frequent visitor to Boystown I am concerned about the crime rate and will do what I can as the head of StreetWise and as a lifelong Chicagoan to help. My heart goes out to the victim and I hope she recovers fully and quickly. If anyone has questions they can contact me at StreetWise, 773-334-6600.
Thank you, Mr. LoBianco for your thoughtful response and concern for our community. Your proactive approach is reassuring and inspiring.
UPDATE DECEMBER 1, 2013
Subsequent to our earlier report. CWB has learned the following:
- The responding officer in this case twice stated that the victim had been hit in the face by the offender. The CPD police report, though, makes no mention of a physical attack. Rather, the police report states that the offender “snatched” money from the victim’s hand when she tried to find a dollar to buy a “newspaper.” Because the police report does not make any mention of the victim being hit in the face, this case was classified as a theft, rather than a robbery. The reason for the discrepancy is not clear.
