Drunk Suburban Man Carjacked Taxi, Killed Woman In River North Crash Minutes Later, Cops Say

Jorgensen in a 2014 mugshot | CPD

UPDATE 7:29PM: Cook County Judge Mary Marubio this afternoon ordered Jorgensen held without bail. Our original report from earlier follows.
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An intoxicated suburban man battered a cab driver late Tuesday, carjacked the victim’s taxi, and then killed a woman when he crashed the cab into two other cars moments later, police said.

Authorities said 29-year-old Michael Jorgensen of Streamwood engaged in a verbal dispute with a cabbie in the 200 block of West Walton around 10:45 p.m. on February 13. Jorgensen walked up to the cab, pulled the driver from his seat, punched him repeatedly, and took off in the victim’s taxi, according to a police department statement.

Minutes later, Jorgensen crashed the taxi into two other vehicles in the 600 block of West Chicago, killing a 69-year-old woman and injuring a 36-year-old female passenger, according to charges. A source said the fatally-injured woman was the younger woman’s mother.

At the crash scene, the taxi driver identified Jorgensen as the man who attacked him and stole his cab, police said.

Jorgensen, who was seriously injured in the collision, is charged with felony murder while committing a forcible felony; felony vehicular hijacking; two felony counts of DUI causing an accident or death; and two misdemeanor traffic violations.


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CWBChicago was created in 2013 by five residents of Wrigleyville and Boystown who had grown disheartened with inaccurate information that was being provided at local Community Policing (CAPS) meetings. Our coverage area has expanded since then to cover Lincoln Park, River North, The Loop, Uptown, and other North Side Areas. But our mission remains unchanged: To provide original public safety reporting with better context and greater detail than mainstream media outlets. Our editorial email address is news@cwbchicago.com