Chicago police on Monday confirmed that a series of violent robberies in Wicker Park, West Town, and Noble Square last week were probably committed by the same group of offenders. The news came in a community alert from detectives in Area Three and Area Five.
Police last week said two robbery victims were pistol-whipped by a group of robbers who fired shots during a third hold-up on Monday evening, October 11. The group returned to the area on Wednesday and pistol-whipped another victim. They haven’t been heard from since police briefly chased them Wednesday night.
Police said the crew confronts victims with a gun that has a green laser sight attached after stepping out of a gray or black SUV. They force victims to surrender their phone and debit card PINs, according to police.
According to the community alert, police believe the same crew is responsible for these crimes:
- Around 9 p.m. on October 11, two armed men walked up to a 26-year-old man on the 1300 block of North Bosworth and demanded his property. CPD spokesperson Kellie Bartoli said. One of the offenders hit the victim in the head with a firearm, and the robbers then fled in a black SUV.
- The same crew is suspected of pistol-whipping a woman during an armed robbery on the 1900 block of West Evergreen shortly before 10 p.m. In that case, Bartoli said, two offenders stepped out of a small black SUV and demanded her property at gunpoint after she got out of her car. The men hit her in the head with a pistol and then fled in the SUV.
- At 10:05 p.m. October 11, two men stepped out of a gray Honda CRV and confronted a 34-year-old woman and a 37-year-old man on the 2100 block of West Race, police said. The offenders pointed a gun at the man and patted him down for valuables but realized that he did not have a wallet or phone with him, according to a CPD statement. They then grabbed the woman’s jacket and demanded her phone and money. She refused and even punched one of the robbers, police said. The suspects ran back to their SUV and fired one shot into the air before driving away, according to CPD.
- At 12:23 a.m. Wednesday, October 13, two offenders displayed handguns and pistol-whipped a 26-year-old man in an alley behind the 1400 block of North Milwaukee, police said. They took his wallet and phone, then fled in a black Honda CRV.
Police spotted the Honda after Wednesday’s robbery and chased it for a couple of minutes until CPD supervisors determined that the pursuit presented too great of a threat to public safety. They terminated the chase.
Last Tuesday, three men jumped out of a small black SUV and confronted a man on the 1600 block of West Beach Avenue while displaying two handguns around 8 p.m. One offender put their gun to a man’s head as the robbery unfolded. But police have not publicly linked that hold-up to the other crimes.
According to the community alert, the victims in one robbery said the suspects are Black males between 18- and 20-years-old who stand 5’11” to 6-feet tall. They have brown eyes and short hair, according to the alert.
CPD detectives can be reached at 312-744-8263 and 312-746-7394 about crime pattern #21-CWP-028
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