Update 12:49 p.m. – CPD has now linked Wednesday’s robbery to the ongoing pattern in an updated community alert.
Three men threw a woman to the ground in the South Loop on Wednesday morning and robbed her of her purse, which contained over $10,000 cash, according to a CPD report. The mugging happened on the 1200 block of South Michigan just after 11 a.m. Police have issued two community alerts about robberies in the immediate area, including one just days ago.
The victim, age 46, was in an alley around 11:04 a.m. when three men approached her and one of them grabbed her purse and threw her to the ground, a CPD spokesperson said. A second offender tried to steal the woman’s luxury SUV, but he couldn’t figure out how to start it, the spokesperson added.
All three robbers fled in another car that headed south toward Roosevelt Road. Police later identified the vehicle as a maroon 2020 Kia sedan that was recently reported stolen. Police have also linked the Kia to a robbery at the Gucci outlet store in Rosemont, according to a law enforcement source.
Investigators have not publicly linked Wednesday’s robbery to a growing pattern of mostly midday muggings in the area.
Those robberies initially began with one offender pushing victims to the ground and stealing their phones on the 1200 to 1500 blocks of South Michigan on January 20 and 21. Each time, he fled in a car that was waiting for him. One witness said the vehicle was blue or black.
Last week, police updated their public warning after the man returned to rob three more people this month. Most recently, police said, the man brought an accomplice and they implied they had a gun while blocking the victim’s path on the 1300 block of South Michigan.
