A Chicago man is charged with pulling off two robberies early Sunday — one at the North-Clybourn Red Line station and another near the Belmont Red Line station. A 15-year-old boy helped him commit the second mugging, according to prosecutors and police.
Elijah Jones, 18, is charged with two counts of felony robbery. Judge David Navarro set his bail at $50,000 and ordered him to go onto electronic monitoring if he can post the $5,000 deposit necessary for release.
The first victim was on the North-Clybourn platform when Jones punched him in the head, knocking him to the ground around 12:30 a.m., prosecutors said. Jones took a phone from the victim’s hand and removed the man’s wallet from his pocket as he lie on the platform, according to prosecutors.
About an hour later, another man noticed Jones and the juvenile following him as he walked near the Belmont CTA station in Lakeview, prosecutors said. Jones allegedly punched the victim several times and ripped his backpack from his shoulders.
The victim followed Jones and the 15-year-old into the Belmont station where he pointed them out to police officers, prosecutors said. Police allegedly found the first victim’s wallet and phone inside the second victim’s stolen backpack.
Jones has no criminal background and has mental health concerns, his public defender said during a bond court hearing Monday.
Including Jones and the teen, tactical officers in the Lakeview-based Town Hall police district made five robbery arrests within four hours on their shift Saturday night and early Sunday.
Around 9:52 p.m. Saturday, a woman was walking in the 4500 block of North Sheridan in Uptown when a group of teenagers grabbed $13 from her hand and beat her, according to a CPD report.
The Town Hall tactical team searched the area and arrested three male juveniles at Clarendon Park around 10 p.m. A 14-year-old and two 15-year-olds were charged with robbery, according to police. Two girls that the victim saw with the boys were not found.
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