Chicago police are alerting commuters who ride CTA trains to take extra care of their wallets and purses, as a pickpocketing scam has hit riders in at least nine different instances over the last month.
According to a community alert issued Sunday, CTA riders in several Chicago neighborhoods have reported that their wallets have been stolen while on trains or on train platforms.
The alert says that two men are working in tandem to execute the thefts. During the robberies, one of the men creates a diversion or blocks the movement of the victim while the other person steals the victim’s wallet from their pocket or purse.
The thieves then take credit and debit cards from the wallets, and have used them to withdraw large sums of cash from ATM’s before banks can shut down the cards.
The incidents have occurred in:
- 300 block of S. Dearborn St. on September 19, 2019 at 2:47 PM
- 0-100 block of N. Dearborn St. on September 23, 2019 at 3:37 PM
- 0-100 block of W. Jackson Blvd. on September 23, 2019 at 3:30 PM
- 200 block of S. State St. on September 24, 2019 at 5:00 PM
- 1100 block of S. State St. on September 28, 2019 at 10:30 PM
- 200 block of S. Wabash Ave. on September 30, 2019 at 3:20 PM
- 200 block of S. Wabash Ave. on October 01, 2019 at 8:00 PM
- 200 block of S. State St. on October 02, 2019 at 5:00 PM
- 0-100 block of N. Dearborn St. on October 02, 2019 at 7:30 PM
The two offenders are described as men between the ages of 45 and 60. One of the men weighs between 180 and 210 pounds, while the other weighs between 220 and 250 pounds. Both men wear baseball caps during the thefts, according to police.
Authorities recommend that CTA riders be aware of their surroundings while on trains and platforms, and to report suspicious activity immediately to CTA personnel or police.
Anyone with information on the thefts can call the CPD’s Central Bureau of Detectives at 312-747-8384.
