An ATM burglary crew is actively targeting businesses across Chicago’s North and Northwest sides, striking at least three locations since Christmas morning, according to police reports. The most recent burglaries occurred early Monday at taverns in Lincoln Park and Portage Park, following a similar ATM theft reported Christmas morning in North Center.
Around 2:30 a.m. Monday, four masked burglars broke into Local Option, a tavern at 1102 West Webster Avenue in Lincoln Park, a CPD report said. Surveillance video shows the men arriving in an SUV, making a U-turn, and stopping directly in front of the bar. All four suspects exited the vehicle while wearing masks. They forced their way inside, carried an ATM out of the business, loaded it into the SUV, and drove away.
Less than two hours later, at a little after 4 a.m., a similar burglary was reported at Di’s Den, 5100 West Irving Park Road in Portage Park. Investigators believe the same crew may be responsible based on the timing, method, and surveillance footage.
Police are working to determine whether the suspects were using a stolen SUV that had been seen circling areas on the Northwest Side before Monday’s burglaries. The vehicle is described as a Kia registered as brown but appearing gray under low nighttime lighting conditions. Additional surveillance video shows five men exiting that vehicle and appearing to case multiple buildings before the burglaries occurred.
This week’s break-ins began Christmas morning with a burglary at Lucky Mini Mart, 4100 block of North Lincoln Avenue in North Center. At approximately 2:47 a.m., burglars broke the front glass of the store, removed both the ATM and a cash register, and fled in a dark-colored SUV. The estimated loss in that burglary was reportedly close to $10,000.
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