Armed carjackers struck again Wednesday evening, this time in Edgewater, where they took a couple’s SUV at gunpoint around 7:40 p.m., according to Chicago police.
The man and woman, both age 38, were getting in their charcoal-colored 2019 Audi Q5 when the hijackers pulled up in a white Honda Civic on the corner of Bryn Mawr and Winthrop, police said. One offender pointed a handgun at the man and ordered him onto the ground while the other carjacker forced the woman out of the Audi’s passenger seat.
Both robbers climbed into the Audi and sped away southbound on Winthrop — with the man’s wallet as a bonus.
A CPD license plate reader detected the stolen Audi traveling southbound on Lake Shore Drive at Chicago Avenue just a few minutes later.
According to an officer at the scene, the carjacker who brandished the handgun is a Black male who stands about 5’9” tall, weighs about 140 pounds, and wore a black hoodie. The other offender is a Black male who stands about 6-feet tall, weighs about 150 pounds, and wore a blue hoodie or sweatshirt, the cop said.
Chicago police recorded 279 carjackings between November 1 and December 15 this year. By comparison, there were 75 during the same period in 2019, according to city data. That’s a 272% increase.
Year-to-date, reports are up 140% compared to 2019.