Chicago's Far South Side has been hit with a spree of liquor store burglaries, with two shops coming under attack by thieves using a black Jeep as their battering ram, police say. The string of smash-and-grab incidents occurred early Monday morning, as the brazen suspects backed the vehicle into storefronts and made off with stolen goods.
In the first incident, which took place around 3:05 a.m. in the 8000 block of South Kedzie Avenue in the Ashburn neighborhood, authorities report that four men exited the Jeep, stormed into the liquor store, and made away with merchandise, as reported by NBC Chicago. The burglars then fled the scene, leaving behind shattered glass and unanswered questions.
About an hour later, the culprits or possibly their cohorts struck again – this time in the 800 block of West 87th Street, as per NBC Chicago. The same black Jeep barreled into the doors of another liquor store, and several suspects entered to grab, whatever merchandise they could before once again fleeing. The back-to-back nature of the crimes has raised suspicions about a possible connection between the two burglaries, although no official link has been confirmed by the police.
No arrests have been made in connection with the burglaries, and Chicago Police Department's Area One detectives are currently investigating the incidents. Anyone with information is urged to come forward as the community reels from the shock of these bold thefts, according to ABC7 Chicago.
