Police are investigating four armed robberies that occurred in Lakeview and Lincoln Park yesterday evening and early today. The hold-ups are part of a robbery surge in the area that has claimed dozens of victims since November 1.
“You’re the reason I carry a fake wallet and still have my real one,” one of the victims told CWBChicago in a message shortly after the crew robbed him on Wednesday evening.
The man said he suffered “a bump on the head and nothing more serious, thankfully,” although the crew did get away with his phone and keys. And his decoy wallet, of course.
Last night’s first robbery was reported on the 1600 block of West Barry between 8:15 and 8:30, said Kellie Bartoli, a CPD spokesperson.
A 21-year-old woman told police that two men approached her on the street and demanded her property at gunpoint. The robbers forced her to surrender her phone’s PIN before escaping in a black SUV that headed west on Barry.
Bartoli said the suspects are two Black men between 18- and 25-years-old who stand 5’7″ to 5’9″ tall and weigh 160 to 175 pounds. One wore a black hoodie, and the other wore a black jacket, she said.
Around 8:53 p.m., three men wearing dark clothing exited a dark-colored vehicle and pistol-whipped a 35-year-old man on the 1600 block of West Cornelia, Bartoli said. They took the man’s valuables and then drove away.
At about the same time, three men stepped out of an SUV to rob at least one victim at gunpoint near the corner of Cornelia and Janssen. The offenders took a wallet, leather jacket, keys, and a phone while a fourth offender stayed in the getaway car nearby.
Most recently, a man and his girlfriend, both 21, were robbed at gunpoint on the 2100 block of North Bissell around 12:05 a.m. today. Bartoli said they were walking when three men exited a gray four-door sedan and approached them while displaying handguns.
They took the victims’ property and drove away.
A similar robbery spree was reported in the area early Sunday
- At 1:19 a.m., two 19-year-old men were walking on the 1800 block of West Wellington when two sedans, one red and one black, pulled up next to them, according to Officer Jessica Rocco, a CPD spokesperson. Two men got out of the black car and confronted the victims at gunpoint, Rocco said. They took the victims’ valuables and fled in the two vehicles.
- Around 1:44 a.m., two men robbed a 30-year-old man at gunpoint as he walked on the 3500 block of North Broadway in Boystown, Officer Ronald Westbrooks said. The offenders then followed the man into an alley on the 500 block of West Addison and robbed him of his gym shoes, according to Westbrooks.
- Aaround 2:23 a.m., a black sedan cut off a driver on the 1500 block of West Wellington and two men emerged with handguns. They robbed the 26-year-old driver of his valuables and then escaped in the sedan, according to Rocco.
Police spotted the sedan in traffic on the 1900 block of West Belmont a short time later, Rocco said, but the car sped away, and no arrests were made. Officers did recover some of the third victim’s property on the 2900 block of North Ashland, according to Rocco.
Lakeview and, to a lesser extend, areas of Lincoln Park and Old Town have seen a surge in robberies during November, with at least 27 victims being held-up, according to CPD records. The Town Hall police district, which patrols Lakeview and the northern third of Lincoln Park, recorded 40 robberies during the first 28 days of November, up from 29 robberies during the period last year, according to CPD data.
Around 1:15 a.m. last Wednesday, three men stepped out of a dark blue sedan and robbed a man at gunpoint on the 400 block of West Oakdale, according to preliminary information from Chicago police. The offenders got away with the victim’s backpack, laptop, and phone. The victim said the primary offender was a Black male wearing a blue hoodie armed with a handgun. He was reportedly accompanied by two other Black males and a getaway driver.
Another man was robbed around 2 a.m. on November 20 at Belmont and Broadway, just a couple of blocks north of that hold-up.
In other recent cases:
- Three men battered and robbed a 46-year-old man as he was entering a residence on the 500 block of West Stratford around 9:45 p.m. on November 17, according to a CPD media statement. The trio fled in a red Mazda SUV with the victim’s phone, wallet, and backpack.
- About 20 minutes earlier, two men stepped out of a red Mazda SUV and robbed two women who were walking on the 800 block of West Wolfram, police said.
- At 11:15 p.m. on November 11, a gunman robbed a 24-year-old man who was walking in the first block of East Elm in the Gold Coast. The offender took the victim’s wallet and computer bag.
- Just five minutes later, a gunman confronted a 72-year-old man and a 67-year-old woman who were sitting in a car on the 200 block of West St. Paul in Old Town. The robber made both victims lie on the ground and then patted them down for valuables, according to police.
Six people were robbed across Lakeview and Buena Park on November 6, according to CPD records:
- Around midnight on the 700 block of West Buena, a gunman stepped out of a silver SUV that was driven by a woman and robbed a 23-year-old man of his wallet,.
- At 1:21 a.m., the offender robbed a 27-year-old man and a 28-year-old man who were walking on the 1000 block of West Diversey. He displayed a handgun and took the victims’ wallets and other items before returning to the silver SUV, Bartoli said.
- At 2:10 a.m., a 26-year-old man was robbed in a similar fashion as he walked on the 3400 block of North Clark in Wrigleyville.
- The gunman struck again at 2:49 a.m. in the 2900 block of North Broadway. Bartoli said a 27-year-old man was walking when the gunman got out of a silver SUV and took his wallet and phone.
- One minute later, the robber mugged a 21-year-old woman who was walking in the 3200 block of North Broadway, Bartoli said. As in the other hold-ups, he displayed a gun and took the victim’s valuables, then escaped in the SUV.
Police said the primary offender on November 6 was a Black male between 18- and 35-years-old who stands 5’6″ to 5’10” tall. He may have a tattoo on his right eyebrow. The woman who drove the getaway car was Hispanic, 20- to 35-years-old, with her hair in a ponytail.