Chicago — From start to finish, it took less than a minute for a carload of armed men to rob a victim at gunpoint in Lincoln Square early Monday. It’s just one of more than 70 similar holdups that have plagued the city since December 2. But this one is on video.
Footage of the robbery at the corner of Berwyn and Campbell was provided to CWBChicago by a reader. Several more robberies were reported during an hour-long spree the same morning.
In the video, a stolen silver Hyundai pulls in front of a man who’s sitting in his parked car. Three masked gunmen jump out of the Hyundai and swarm the victim’s vehicle, opening the doors and rifling through his belongings.
The crew takes bags and other property from the victim’s car and then returns to the Hyundai, which drives away. Watch:
Monday morning’s robberies began around 3 a.m. in the 2600 block of West Rice in Humboldt Park. Two armed men robbed a 42-year-old man at gunpoint as he exited his car.
Then, a string of similar holdups, including the one seen in the video, unfolded:
- At 3:18 a.m., a 42-year-old man was in his car in the 4300 block of North Leavitt when four men pulled up in a silver sedan and robbed him of his phone and wallet at gunpoint.
- Around 3:45 a.m., a 36-year-old woman was robbed while walking in the 3100 block of West Grace. Three armed men pistol-whipped her, took her property, and fled in a silver vehicle. The woman was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center for treatment.
- Three men robbed another man at gunpoint in the 2100 block of West Granville around 3:50 a.m.
- A McDonald’s employee was robbed outside the restaurant in the 4500 block of North Kedzie around 3:52 a.m.
- At about 3:53 a.m., three armed men robbed a man who was unloading his vehicle in the 3100 block of West Leland. One of the robbers punched the victim in the face before the group fled in a silver sedan.
- A man and woman were robbed as they got into their car in the 2300 block of West Superior around 4 a.m. The offenders escaped in a silver sedan.
- The robbery crew used a stolen Hyundai that had a broken rear side window during each of the holdups, according to a law enforcement source. That car was found abandoned in East Garfield Park around 4:30 a.m.
Police have not announced any charges in connection with the robberies.
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