We’re beginning to an idea of how many downtown businesses were burglarized and damaged during riots and looting two weekends ago.
Early information from the Chicago Police Department shows 116 burglaries on May 30 and 31 have been reported in the CPD districts that protect the downtown area.
By comparison, the two previous weekends combined saw just one burglary in the same districts.
Reports filed in the downtown districts are spread across the area. Videos posted to social media during the riots showed widespread looting along the Magnificent Mile, yet police data shows only a couple of burglary and criminal damage reports have been filed so far along the famed retail corridor.
In addition to the burglaries, another 89 criminal damage reports have been filed in the downtown police districts for May 30 and 31, according to CPD data. The same districts received a total of 10 criminal damage reports during the two previous weekends combined.
Farther north, the Lakeview-based 19th Police District received 20 burglary reports during the two days of looting. That compares to just one burglary report for the two previous weekends combined.
The district received 23 criminal damage reports on May 30 and 31, according to the data. It received 10 such reports over the two previous weekends.
Businesses continue to file riot-related police reports as employees return to stores for the first time since the uprising. Many people reported getting busy signals or encountering interminable wait times when they tried to file police reports over the phone last week.
Mapping of the 19th District’s reports shows a pocket of damage reports filed along Clark Street between Fullerton and Diversey. Clusters of burglaries were reported near the Clybourn corridor and near the three-way intersection of Ashland, Lincoln, and Belmont.
