CHICAGO — At least 12 more people were targeted during two waves of robberies Friday, one across West Town in the afternoon and the other in Wicker Park during the evening, according to preliminary Chicago police reports. The same stolen Hyundai was used as a getaway car during both sprees.
Police began receiving robbery reports around 1:35 p.m. That’s when a woman was robbed at gunpoint by three men behind the 1800 block of North Spaulding. Three men wearing black clothing and ski masks jumped out of a silver Hyundai sedan and took her purse, a CPD report said.
The crew was described as Black males in their late teens or early 20s, thin, and about 6 feet tall.
Similar robberies were reported within minutes.
Three people were robbed at gunpoint in the 4100 block of West Wabansia around 1:45 p.m. A few minutes later, a woman was robbed outside BMO Bank, 4959 West North Avenue.
The same Hyundai was used during both crimes. According to witnesses, a shirt or blanket was covering the broken rear-side window. That detail is typically a sign that the vehicle has been stolen by “Kia Boys.”
Police suspect the same crew committed three robberies around 2:15 p.m., robbing a man in the 2200 block of West Walnut and robbing two men in separate holdups in the 2100 block of West Walnut.
Two or three masked men stepped out of the silver Hyundai each time to commit the crimes.
Chicago police license plate readers detected the Hyundai entering Wicker Park around 7:34 p.m. More robberies were soon reported.
First, three people were robbed at gunpoint by three men near Division and Wood streets.
At about the same time, a food runner was robbed at gunpoint while making a delivery in the 1500 block of North Damen.
No arrests were announced in connection with any of the robberies.
Robbery reports are up 25% from last year in Chicago. They’re up 36% compared to 2019.
The real story, though, is what’s happening in the areas where Friday’s sprees occurred.
Robberies are up 58% this year in CPD’s Shakespeare (14th) District and up 114% versus 2019, according to the police department’s latest statistics report. Based in Logan Square, Shakespeare’s officers serve nearby neighborhoods like Bucktown, Wicker Park, and part of Humboldt Park.
Next door, in the Near West (12th) District, which includes areas from Humboldt Park to the West Loop, robberies have increased by 63% this year. They’re up 95% compared to 2019.
Just west of the 12th District, the Grand Central (25th) District is even worse, with robberies up 129% from 2022 and 111% compared to 2019.
Recent robbery spree coverage
- Suspect in custody after robbers take puppy at gunpoint; more holdups reported in Logan Square (October 20, 2023)
- 9 armed robberies, carjackings reported in about an hour on Thursday morning (October 19, 2023)
- 2 more liquor stores robbed in Logan Square (October 19, 2023)
- 7 liquor stores robbed in 2-hour spree Saturday evening (October 15, 2023)
- Cops arrest 2 after daytime armed robberies in Logan Square (October 14, 2023)
- 4 liquor stores, customers robbed in less than an hour on Wednesday night (October 12, 2023)
- Lincoln Park carjacker in custody, but West Town robbery crew claims 11 victims in 40 minutes (October 11, 2023)
- Armed robbery crew has killed 2 people this week, Chicago cops are warned (October 11, 2023)
- On-duty IDOT Minuteman, bar patrons among victims in overnight robbery sprees (October 10, 2023)
- At least 6 robbed in Medical District this morning; gun fires during West Town carjacking attempt (October 9, 2023)
- Four 15-year-olds charged with robbery spree along the Brown Line (October 9, 2023)
- Strings of store robberies, street holdups reported Friday night (October 7, 2023)
- 7 victims targeted in overnight robbery spree, driver carjacked in West Loop (October 6, 2023)
- 15-year-old robbed 5 people in armed crime spree, Chicago police say (October 6, 2023)
- 68-year-old man shot, critically injured during possible robbery in Wicker Park (October 5, 2023)
- At least 11 robbed in 2-hour crime spree from Bucktown to Pilsen (October 5, 2023)
- Suspect in custody after Monday morning robbery spree (October 2, 2023)
- Man shot and killed in Noble Square as robbery spree unfolded Sunday morning (October 1, 2023).
- In robbery-plagued Chicago, community meetings draw packed houses, claim of ‘propaganda’ (September 29, 2023)
- 15 daytime armed robberies reported in about 4 hours Tuesday (September 26, 2023)
- More carjackings and robberies keep Chicago cops running from the West Loop to West Ridge (September 26, 2023)
- Solo Chicago cop chases armed robbers across the city: ‘I’m not going to terminate myself until we crash’ (September 25, 2023)
- Robbery victim shot in Humboldt Park as crime sprees continue (September 24, 2023)
- Rifle-wielding crew commits at least 5 robberies in 20 minutes on Saturday morning (September 23, 2023)
- At least 14 robbed in violent, hour-long robbery spree overnight; 78-year-old beaten by muggers (September 21, 2023)
- Armed robbers strike 3 times in about an hour in Boystown, Lakeview, Uptown (September 19, 2023)
- DePaul students among several targeted in North Side robbery spree; more cases reported in Wicker Park, West Town (September 17, 2023)
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