Charges filed in three downtown robberies — including two at Red Line stations

Felony charges have been filed in three separate robberies downtown. Two of the armed robberies were at Red Line stations.

Robert Pinkston is accused of robbing a man at gunpoint inside the Clark/Division station. | CPD; Google

Robert Pinkston, 36, of Riverdale is accused of robbing a man at gunpoint inside the Clark/Division Red Line station last Friday evening.

Pinkston had his hand in his jacket pocket as he approached a 28-year-old man from behind around 8:15 p.m. and told the victim “I have a gun. You know what this is,” prosecutors said. He allegedly ordered the victim to empty his pockets, took $45 from the man, and then fled.

Cops found Pinkston sitting at a nearby bus station. After he was identified by the victim, police searched Pinkston and found him to be in possession of $409 cash and a revolver that contained five live rounds and one spent round, according to court records.

Judge Sophia Atcherson ordered Pinkston held without bail.

Dimitrios Dixon was arrested moments after a robbery at the State/Lake Red Line station. | Google; CPD

A Wicker Park man has been charged with robbing a 59-year-old CTA customer at the State/Lake Red Line station on August 19th. Prosecutors said Dimitrios Dixon brandished a box cutter and demanded the man’s property. Dixon got the man’s Ventra card, but the victim flagged down officers at street level and Dixon was quickly arrested, according to court records.

A box cutter and the victim’s Ventra card were recovered, police said.

Dixon is charged with Class X felony armed robbery. Judge Michael Clancy ordered him held without bail

After being arrested 27 times in about four years, one of the Loop’s ubiquitous “flyer boys” is now arrested again—for robbery, this time.

Darius Moss | CPD

Darius Moss Jr, 29, of the Near West Side is accused of threatening to shoot a TJ Maxx security guard who tried to stop him from stealing $111 worth of merchandise on August 19th, according to court records.

The 41-year-old loss prevention agent told police that he tried to stop Moss at the store’s escalator, but he backed off after Moss repeatedly said, “I have a 9-millimeter, what are you going to do?”

Officers broadcast a description of the offender and Moss was stopped in the 300 block of South Plymouth Court by officers who noticed his face tattoos. After the store guard identified Moss, officers found that his bag contained TJ Maxx merchandise, according to an arrest report.

Judge Michael Clancy set bail for Moss at $50,000. That means Moss can go free before trial by posting a $5,000 deposit bond.

Moss was charged in June with soliciting charitable contributions without a license after he allegedly approached people in the Loop with flyers seeking donations for a “basketball team.”

Police have said handbill distributors—also known as “flyer boys”—are frequently involved in thefts and robberies of pedestrians and motorists in the downtown area.

The TJ Maxx incident is the first robbery case on Moss’ extensive record.

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About CWBChicago 4357 Articles
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.