Area North detectives this afternoon released an armed robbery alert in which they connect five cases across Lake View and Uptown.
Multiple offenders are approaching people as they walk alone or sit alone in cars. One of the offenders produces a chrome or silver handgun and demands the victim’s property or vehicles, police said.
CWB Chicago has learned through a source that detectives have high-quality surveillance images of the suspects, who are 3 or 4 black men between 18- and 20-years-old.
Cases linked by police occurred at the following locations, dates, and times;
• October 11 at 3:30 a.m. in the 2200 block of West Melrose
• October 11 at 4:15 a.m. in the 3000 block of North Ravenswood (Details here)
• October 11 at 4:30 a.m. in the 1000 block of West Byron (Details here)
• October 11 at 5:15 a.m. in the 500 block of West Briar (Details here)
• October 14 at 4:46 p.m. in the 800 block of West Lakeside
On Lakeside Place, the offenders pulled a handgun and forced the victim out of his gray 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee, according to a law enforcement source. Four or five robbers climbed in and drove off with the vehicle, the source said.
Another source told us that the Ravenswood incident might have also been an attempted carjacking. In that case, a Lyft driver who had pulled over to take a nap was startled by the robbers. She managed to drive away before a robbery was carried out.
Anyone with information about the incidents is encouraged to call Area North Detectives at (312) 744-8261. You can refer to pattern P16-N186
