CHICAGO — In an unusual twist, a man was carjacked of not one, but two vehicles in North Center on Monday night, according to Chicago police. Carjackings were also reported in Edgewater and Humboldt Park overnight.
The North Center hijacking occurred around 11:08 p.m. in the 3600 block of North Wolcott.
Police said a 41-year-old man was going back and forth between his two vehicles, a gray Toyota Camry and a red Kia Sportage when a silver sedan with four occupants pulled up.
Two men got out of the sedan, displayed firearms, and demanded the man’s keys, a CPD spokesperson said. He complied, and the men drove away with both of his cars.
Acting on a tip, police found some of the victim’s property, including his license plates, in the 3800 block of North Ravenswood a few minutes later.
Then, around 3:18 a.m., a 59-year-old man was carjacked while sitting in his silver Toyota Sienna minivan at a White Castle in the 5900 block of North Ridge.
Three men stepped out of a red SUV and ordered him out of his car at gunpoint, then drove away with the vehicle. He was not injured.
Finally, around 4:30 a.m., three armed men exited a minivan and carjacked another driver at the Mobil service station, 2805 West Division, according to preliminary information. The group took the man’s black 2019 Toyota RAV4 and headed south on California.
Despite the spike in activity overnight, carjacking cases are down 29% this year compared to the same point last year, according to CPD data. Still, the number of incidents remains well above pre-COVID levels.
Here are the carjacking totals in Chicago through April 17 each year:
2018 226
2019 138
2020 236
2021 486
2022 504
2023 356
April’s carjacking pace is also well off the numbers seen in 2021 and 2022. The hijacking totals for April 1 through 17 annually are:
2018 29
2019 28
2020 38
2021 63
2022 70
2023 44