Chicago police are investigating another string of armed robberies reported late Wednesday and early today, including a carjacking in West Town during which a driver managed to get his child out of the car but lost his gun to the hijackers.
Within an hour, more armed robberies were reported in Lincoln Square, Irving Park, and Albany Park.
The carjacking occurred in the 1400 block of West Erie around 11:28 p.m., a CPD spokesperson said. A 21-year-old man was sitting in his black Volkswagen SUV when three men walked up with firearms.
They ordered him out, and one of the men went through his pockets and found the victim’s handgun in a sweater pocket, police said. After losing his gun to the robbers, the man took his child from the back seat of his car before the hijackers drove away with it.
He said the crew consisted of three Black males who were all armed and all wore black masks with dark clothing.
Then, around 12:10 a.m., a 45-year-old man was robbed at gunpoint as he walked in the 4600 block of North Rockwell near the Rockwell Brown Line station.
Police said a black SUV rolled up, and three men got out to rob him at gunpoint. He complied, and the crew fled south on Rockwell. Cops found the victim’s phone a few blocks away.
Another man was robbed at gunpoint around 12:25 a.m. in the 4700 block of North Troy by a man who got out of a black SUV and took his wallet, keys, and phone.
Finally, three men armed with handguns entered the 7-Eleven at 2900 West Montrose around 12:40 a.m.
One of the offenders hit the victim before the crew took a large amount of liquor and cigarettes from the store. EMS took the victim to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center for treatment, according to CPD.
About 20 minutes after the 7-Eleven robbery, Chicago police located the hijacked Volkswagen on the West Side and took two people into custody, according to a source. Further information about the arrests was not immediately available.
The robberies are similar to a wave of hold-ups and carjackings reported the night before. Those crimes were also committed by three or four masked men who brandished multiple firearms.
CPD has issued a series of community alerts about armed robbery teams going on nighttime crime sprees on the city’s north and near west sides.
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