Chicago police are investigating a string of high-profile crimes across the city, with thieves hitting high-end retailers and stealing expensive vehicles in several neighborhoods in a matter of hours.
In one of the robberies, several suspects in masks stormed into the Louis Vuitton store in the 900 block of North Michigan Avenue on Thursday morning. After telling store employees they were armed, the thieves got away with multiple handbags from the store.
The suspects were tracked by GPS to Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood, where police found the handbags inside of a vehicle.
No arrests were made in the incident.
In another incident, an H&M clothing retailer was hit by a total of five suspects, who fled the store with merchandise and ultimately tried to escape by running down CTA Red Line tracks nearby.
Police were able to determine the direction the suspects were moving in, and captured them at the next station down the Red Line.
Despite the progress on those thefts, there are several others that remain under investigation. In the 200 block of South Michigan Avenue at approximately 10 p.m. Wednesday, a man told authorities that he was held up at gunpoint, with the thieves demanding his Canada Goose jacket.
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“He was yelling at me like ‘take your jacket off!’’ the man said. “I saw the gun. I don’t know if it was real or not. I just took off the jacket and he jumped in a car and left.”
The high-priced coats have become a popular target for thieves, with a price tag of approximately $1,000 on average.
Police say the suspects got away in a red Range Rover Sport. A vehicle of the same make, model and color was stolen at approximately 8:30 p.m. Wednesday night in the 2600 block of West Finch, according to Chicago police.
Later Wednesday, the vehicle was involved in another armed robbery, according to Chicago police.
No suspects are in custody with the series of thefts and the carjacking.
In another incident in the 1500 block of North Dearborn at approximately 9:10 p.m., a couple was carjacked and robbed in the city’s Gold Coast neighborhood. The thieves got away with the couple’s Porsche, and the robbers also demanded the victims’ cell phones.
Nobody was injured in any of the thefts, but police are encouraging residents and visitors to be aware of their surroundings.
“I’ll be more aware of it, but walking around anywhere these days you have to keep an eye out,” Chicago resident Alice Newbro said.
