A man and woman were taken to a hospital after armed robbers confronted them as they walked on the 600 block of West Cornelia in Boystown early Monday, police said.
The victims, a 58-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman, were on the sidewalk near Broadway when a white Mercedes sedan pulled up around 12:23 a.m. Three men stepped out of the car and one of them displayed a handgun while demanding the victims’ property, according to a CPD spokesperson.
The spokesperson said that when the male victim refused to comply, the gunman hit him in the head several times with the weapon.
One of the other robbers confronted the woman and demanded her property. She complied.
The group then escaped in the Mercedes with property belonging to both victims. A dark sedan followed them from the area.
Both victims were taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center for treatment. Police said the man received treatment for lacerations to his head. The woman was admitted for observation.
Monday’s robbery is similar to one that unfolded the night before in Lincoln Park. In that case, three masked offenders robbed a 23-year-old man at gunpoint on the 2400 block of North Orchard around 2:15 a.m. They escaped in a gray Hyundai that had been stolen an hour earlier near Belmont and Clark streets in Lakeview.
Robbery reports in the local police district are up 49% compared to last year, according to CPD records. They’re up 53% compared to 2020, 49% compared to 2019, and 12% compared to 2018.
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