Shots fired, at least 9 robbed as armed holdup crew sweeps across downtown

CHICAGO — A group of armed robbers fired shots and dragged a 66-year-old woman to the ground in Streeterville overnight. The attack was part of a robbery spree that started about 45 minutes later near the University of Illinois Chicago. At least nine people were robbed.

The robberies all involved a group of men who traveled in a silver or gray sedan that had one black door, according to witnesses.

It all started around 12:15 a.m. near the corner of Racine and Harrison. Two men wearing hoodies displayed guns and took the victims’ phones.

A few minutes later, around 12:25 a.m., the group was in Streeterville. Two men targeted a 66-year-old woman as she stood in the 600 block of North Fairbanks, according to Chicago police. One of the men fired shots while the other dragged the woman into the street until she let go of her property, police said.

No one was shot, but the woman was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for treatment of other injuries. CPD said she is in good condition.

Within a few minutes, robberies started popping up in the Loop, beginning in the 700 block of South Clark. Two robbers displayed guns and demanded money from a man, police said, but a 46-year-old woman intervened.

The robbers struck her in the head with a firearm and escaped in the silver sedan without getting anything from the victims.

Around 12:30 a.m., robbers targeted two more victims in the 200 block of East Randolph, near Millennium Park. Once again, the men pistol-whipped one of the victims before fleeing in a gray sedan.

Finally, three people were robbed outside the Hyatt Regency, 151 East Wacker Drive, around 12:53 a.m. The group was walking when the two gunmen pulled up in a silver sedan. 

During the robbery, the offenders pistol-whipped a 28-year-old woman, and a 25-year-old man in the group suffered cuts to his knee and hand. Both were taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in good condition, police said. The third victim, a 28-year-old man, was not injured.

The exact number of robbers involved in the crimes is not clear. All of them were described as Black males in their late teens or early 20s. One wore a white hoodie, while others wore dark-colored hoodies, according to victims and witnesses.

Original reporting you’ll see nowhere else, paid for by our readers. Click here to support our work.