Chicago — A food delivery driver was robbed and carjacked at gunpoint outside a Lakeview restaurant overnight, according to Chicago police. It’s the latest indication that vehicular hijackings may be spiking again after falling out of vogue during the “Kia Boys” phenomenon late last year.
Chicago police said the 32-year-old driver was working a delivery in the 1600 block of West Belmont when two men got out of a black sedan and demanded his property at gunpoint around 2:30 a.m. They took cash from the driver and then stole his gold 2019 Chevy Equinox, which was parked nearby.
Footage from a nearby security camera showed the hijackers traveling east on Belmont, then making a U-turn to confront the victim, an officer said.
On Monday night, another man was carjacked in Lakeview, and a second victim was targeted in an apparent hijacking attempt in Boystown.
The pace of carjacking reports began to fade in the second half of 2022 as car thieves seemed to turn their attention to stealing Kia and Hyundai vehicles with an ignition design flaw, but hijackings are increasing in the new year.
Through January 16, the Chicago police took 99 carjacking reports this month. That’s up slightly from last year’s pace, below 2021’s record high, and well above earlier years.