Police are investigating yet another carjacking attempt on the North Side. The latest incident unfolded around 10:30 Wednesday night in North Center — about three blocks from where a woman was carjacked the night before.
In last night’s case, a vehicle pulled up next to a 28-year-old woman as she finished parking her car on the 3600 block of North Bell. Four or five men exited the other car, and one of them ordered the woman to get out of her vehicle, according to Officer Jessica Rocco, a CPD spokesperson.
When the woman failed to comply, the offender battered her and tried to pull her out of the car, Rocco said. The victim began honking her horn, and the offenders fled the scene when neighbors started to investigate the commotion.
Rocco said the victim suffered a cut and bruising to her lip and hand, but no medical attention was needed at the time. The woman said the would-be carjackers were Black males in their mid- to late teens who arrived in a small SUV.
On Tuesday, two men threw a 52-year-old woman to the ground and carjacked her at gunpoint as she unloaded groceries at her home in the 3700 block of North Hoyne around 5:08 p.m., police said. Those carjackers got away with the victim’s gray 2017 Jeep Renegade, CPD spokesperson Karie James said.
At least six vehicular hijackings have been reported in the Lakeview-based Town Hall Police District this week.
In addition to Lakeview, Town Hall officers patrol North Center and parts of Uptown, Lincoln Square, and Lincoln Park.
Official CPD records, which are embargoed for a week before being made public, show 32 carjackings in Town Hall through November 15 — four times the number seen in 2019.
Citywide, carjacking cases are up 125% compared to last year. This week, a police spokesperson told WGN that widespread use of masks during COVID-19 and the police department’s policy against vehicle pursuits are likely contributing to the rise.
