CHICAGO — We’ve learned a little more about the four robbery suspects that Illinois State Police and Chicago cops arrested after the group’s getaway car crashed on Tuesday morning on the Eisenhower Expressway west of downtown.
The first thing we’ve learned is that charges have only been filed against one of the four people. Another thing we’ve learned is that the one who did get charged is just 14 years old.
Chicago police said the boy is charged with 12 counts of armed robbery with a firearm for a 45-minute crime spree he participated in before getting arrested.
The boy is part of the group that committed the robberies, starting around 1:50 a.m. in the 1100 block of West Taylor. They robbed a 29-year-old man there, then hustled to the 1100 block of South Canal, where, five minutes later, they robbed a 38-year-old man and a 45-year-old woman, police said.
And five minutes later, they robbed a 36-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man in the 700 block of West Taylor near the Dan Ryan Expressway.
Police said the boy and his accomplices went on to rob a 28-year-old woman in the 2400 block of South Canal at 2:20 a.m. and a 44-year-old man in the 2500 block of South Halsted four minutes later.
At about 2:30 a.m., a couple of tourists were robbed as they stood near the intersection of Chicago and Milwaukee avenues. A Chicago police spokesperson said a 39-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman were outside when four people pulled up in a gray or tan sedan. Three men wearing ski masks got out of the car with guns. CPD says the 14-year-old was one of them.
One of the robbers hit the woman in the head and took her property, police said. The group returned to the car and sped away.
About five minutes later, he helped the crew rob two men, ages 30 and 31, in the 1200 block of North Milwaukee.
A state trooper soon spotted a stolen car that Chicago police linked to the robberies shortly after the robbery on Milwaukee Avenue. The vehicle tried to speed away but crashed on the Eisenhower near Morgan Street, striking two other cars and leading to the arrest of four suspects.
It’s unclear why charges have not been announced against the other three people that police saw run from the vehicle.
The boy is charged with 12 counts of armed robbery with a firearm and misdemeanor counts of criminal trespass to a vehicle and battery.
Armed robbery crews have been committing similar robbery sprees on a near-daily basis for weeks, mainly in West Town, Humboldt Park, and Logan Square, but sometimes dipping into Lincoln Park, downtown, and the North Side.
Law enforcement sources have told CWBChicago that they believe at least three groups of robbers have been involved in the holdups, so there is much work to do.