Nobody is safe

 

CHICAGO — An off-duty federal agent is among the latest victims of Chicago’s ubiquitous street robbery crews.

At least two vehicles loaded with armed men were actively robbing people downtown and on the North and West sides from late Wednesday into this morning.

On the Mag Mile, a 33-year-old man who identified himself as a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) agent was robbed at gunpoint in the 900 block of North Michigan around 2:22 a.m.

He told police that two men got out of a dark SUV with handguns and took his valuables. They tossed his badge on the ground before fleeing westbound on Delaware, the man reported.

Around 1 a.m., five men were robbed at gunpoint in the 1200 block of South Wabash, a CPD spokesperson confirmed. The victims, ages 21, 25, 27, 28, and 33, said they were outside when a red or purple SUV arrived.

Between three and five men exited the vehicle, displayed guns, and took the victims’ valuables. They also struck the oldest man in the back of the head with a firearm before fleeing in the SUV.

It’s unclear if that incident is related to at least three robberies reported overnight involving a group of gunmen who traveled in a burgundy-colored Dodge Durango. The vehicle was reported stolen from the 2100 block of West Armitage on Wednesday morning, CPD records show.

Around 1:20 a.m., the crew robbed some people who were smoking outside a bar in the 2600 block of West Fullerton. An officer who responded said up to five people got out of the Durango with guns to rob the victims.

Another man was robbed by the same group near the corner of Milwaukee Avenue and Gale Street in Jefferson Park shortly before 2 a.m. He told police they pushed him to the ground, put guns to his face, and forced him to reveal his phone password.

Around 1:20 a.m., armed men stepped out of a dark-red Dodge Durango and confronted a man in the 2000 block of North Milwaukee in Logan Square. They hit him in the back of the head with a firearm and took his wallet and iPhone, a CPD report said.

CPD linked three more robberies to the Durango: in the 1900 block of North California around 1:15 a.m.; the 2400 block of North Central around 2:11 a.m.; and the 3400 block of North Knox at 2:40 a.m.

In a community alert issued Thursday afternoon, police said the Durango crew consisted of Black males between 15- and 25 years old. They stood 5’6″ to 5’10” tall, weighed 140 to 160 pounds, and wore black face masks with dark clothing.

In another incident, a 33-year-old woman was carjacked in the 2000 block of North Whipple in Logan Square around 11:40 p.m. Wednesday. A CPD spokesperson said she was outside her vehicle when two men approached her from behind and demanded her belongings and car keys.

She complied and they drove away with her white Acura ZDX. About two hours later, officers were advised that CPD license plate readers detected the Acura in traffic on Michigan Avenue near Grant Park.

The hijacker was described as a Black male with facial tattoos who wore a dark baseball cap and a white t-shirt.

Among other recent robberies:

• Two men robbed a victim at gunpoint near Maplewood and Milwaukee in Logan Square around 3:40 Wednesday morning.
• Armed carjackers took a man’s tan Jeep Grand Cherokee in the 2400 block of West Homer in Logan Square around 7:10 a.m. Wednesday. They drove away with the victim’s SUV, leaving a stolen Kia Sportage at the scene.
• Just before 1 p.m. Wednesday, three men jumped out of a white vehicle, physically attacked, and tried to rob a man in the 2900 block of North Milwaukee. They did not get anything from him before escaping in the Kia or Hyundai they arrived in, according to a CPD report.
• In River North, a masked man jumped into a woman’s Lexus in the 400 block of West Ontario around 4:15 p.m. Wednesday. He drove away, dragging her a short distance, a police report said. The car was recovered nearby a few hours later. The woman was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for treatment.
• Five people were robbed at gunpoint in the 1800 block of South Throop around 2 a.m. today. Three or four masked men exited a four-door black sedan with guns and robbed the victims, a CPD report said.

In modestly better news, a stolen car used in a host of armed robberies earlier this week crashed as Illinois State Police troopers pursued it in Bronzeville on Wednesday evening.

At least two people were arrested after the Kia SUV slammed into a utility pole.

As CWBChicago reported yesterday, Chicago cops spotted the Kia while it was being used in an active robbery spree early Wednesday, but CPD supervisors ordered officers not to engage with the vehicle.