A food delivery driver wound up on the wrong end of a handgun when he tried to stop a group of auto thieves from taking his car in Lincoln Park on Saturday afternoon, according to Chicago police.
The 34-year-old victim found three men or boys sitting in his vehicle when he returned to it after making a delivery on the 2200 block of North Lincoln around 1:27 p.m., Officer Alex Aguas said.
He tried to open the door, but the man in the front passenger seat pointed a gun at him, according to Aguas. The victim stepped back, and the group headed south in his Nissan Altima.
Police found the man’s car abandoned about 90 minutes later under the Brown Line tracks at Evergreen Avenue in Old Town.
Area Three detectives are investigating the case.
Chicago police recorded ten carjackings in Lincoln Park this year through May 14. That’s twice the number seen during the same time last year. There was one hijacking by mid-May 2020 and five by mid-May 2019.
Citywide, 53 carjackings were reported May 1 through May 14. That’s exactly the same number seen during those dates last year. There were 28 during the period in 2020 and 17 in 2019.
Year-to-date hijackings are up 5% citywide through mid-May. Police logged 605 hijackings through May 14, compared to 576 at the same point last year and 290 and 172 during 2020 and 2019 respectively, according to the city’s data portal.
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