An armed man has robbed three women of their jewelry at gunpoint since late July, all while they were walking alone on the streets of Little Italy, according to a community alert issued by Chicago police. The Chicago Police Department's Area 3 Detective Division says the suspect demanded each woman's jewelry at gunpoint.
The alert lists three separate incidents spanning more than a month in the neighborhood. According to the Chicago Police Area 3 Detective Division
, the first robbery happened around 6:30 a.m. on July 30 in the 1200 block of West Taylor Street. The second occurred nearly a month later, on August 25 at roughly 10:18 p.m., in the 1000 block of South Lytle Street, and the third took place September 2 at about 11:26 p.m. in the 1000 block of South Racine Avenue. Police describe the suspect as an African American male in his 30s or 40s with dreadlocks or a braided hairstyle, officially designated Pattern # P26-3-033.
Notably, CBS Chicago reported an alley robbery on Flournoy Street.
A Second, Separate Pattern Emerges in Lincoln Park
The Little Italy alert isn't the only one Area 3 detectives issued this month targeting women for their jewelry. Days earlier, according to CWB Chicago, detectives issued a separate community alert, Pattern # P26-3-030, for daytime armed robberies targeting women for jewelry in Lincoln Park. Police have not publicly linked the two patterns.
That Lincoln Park pattern involved two women robbed at gunpoint within 12 minutes of each other on a Sunday afternoon in the 2200 block of North Halsted Street and the 1800 block of North Larrabee Street, the outlet reports. One victim was forced to surrender engagement rings and necklaces valued at over $5,000. Although police have not formally tied the two crime patterns together, both involve armed offenders demanding high-value jewelry from women on public streets.
Key questions remain open for now, including whether surveillance footage from Taylor Street, Lytle Street, or Racine Avenue has turned up a getaway vehicle, whether detectives are testing any connection between the Little Italy and Lincoln Park offenders, and what targeted patrols the 12th District might deploy around the neighborhood.
Pattern Bucks a Broader Drop in Robberies
The Little Italy robberies stand out as a concentrated series of incidents in the neighborhood.
Little Italy's History With Serial Robbery Patterns
Earlier, ABC 7 Chicago reported four robberies in Little Italy and the South Loop on Friday, Nov. 1.
Just weeks before this latest alert, Hoodline reported that 12th District officers swarmed the 1000 block of South May Street on September 3 following late-night 911 calls about an armed person and arrested a suspect on an unlawful ammunition possession charge. The 12th District station is on Blue Island Avenue.
What Suspects Could Face if Charged
If police identify and arrest a suspect, potential penalties would depend on the charges.
Anyone with information about the Little Italy robberies can contact Area 3 Detectives at 312-744-8263. The robberies are identified as Pattern # P26-3-033.
