Gunmen rob cab driver outside River North hotel

The cabbie was robbed in the first block of West Illinois Street. | Google

Chicago — A group of men armed with rifles and handguns robbed a cab driver as he picked up a passenger in River North overnight.

The cabbie, 49, was outside the Hyatt Place Chicago hotel, 66 West Illinois, when a white SUV pulled up next to him around 5 a.m., according to a Chicago police report.

The offenders displayed at least three guns, including a rifle, as they broke the cab’s driver-side window and robbed the man, according to the report.

After the hold-up, the four-man crew returned to the SUV, possibly a Nissan Rogue, and headed north on Dearborn Street.

On Saturday morning, a taxi driver and his passenger were robbed in West Town.

That driver told police four men wearing ski masks pulled up next to him around 3 a.m. in the 2700 block of West Superior. The group displayed guns and took his wallet and watch, according to a Chicago police report. The crew also robbed the cabbie’s female passenger before driving away.

The Chicago Police Department’s latest statistics report, published Monday, shows robbery cases are up 26% in January compared to the same time last year. The report showed that this year’s robbery tally is also 17% higher than 2021, 29% higher than 2020, and 25% higher than 2019.

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CWBChicago was created in 2013 by five residents of Wrigleyville and Boystown who had grown disheartened with inaccurate information that was being provided at local Community Policing (CAPS) meetings. Our coverage area has expanded since then to cover Lincoln Park, River North, The Loop, Uptown, and other North Side Areas. But our mission remains unchanged: To provide original public safety reporting with better context and greater detail than mainstream media outlets. Our editorial email address is news@cwbchicago.com