The brother of Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan was attacked and robbed of his iPod on his way to work early Thursday morning.
Jesse Anderson, 35, of Evanston, was leaving the Chicago Red Line station on his way to work when five people punched him and took his iPod and cash, Chicago police said.
A woman in the group grabbed his iPod, he told police, and when he tried to get it back, a man punched him in the face. Members of the group are estimated to be between 15 and 25 years old.
Corgan later took to Twitter to describe what happened to his brother: "My little brother Jesse was attacked and robbed this morning by 3 men," he wrote.
Corgan directed his followers to Anderson's Facebook page to "send him some love."
On Wednesday, another man was assaulted and robbed of his iPhone and wallet aboard a CTA Brown Line train. The incident occurred near the Chicago and Franklin station, according to witnesses.
"People were screaming for help," said witness Andrew Webb. "One of the guys was bleeding, another looked like he had a black eye."
Other attacks involving several people ganging up on individuals include one Tuesday evening near Chicago and Wabash and weekend attacks on CTA buses, in Streeterville and along the lakefront.
McCarthy said that all of the incidents shouldn't be thought of as being connected, but said that police do have a plan to combat the rash of attacks. Nearly 30 people have already been arrested, he said.
