2 Chicago Nail Salons Robbed at Gunpoint

Chicago police are investigating after two nail salons were robbed at gunpoint in the last week.

The incidents occurred at two separate businesses in the city’s West Town neighborhood, according to police.

Authorities said the first took place at Pinky Nails, in the 1400 block of West Grand Avenue on Thursday.

Two men believed to be in their 20s entered the salon armed with handguns, officials said, and announced a robbery.

They took an undisclosed amount of cash from a 50-year-old female employee, according to police, before running out the back door in an unknown direction.

The second robbery took place at around 5:28 p.m. on Monday.

Authorities said two men, believed to be between 18 and 25 years old, entered Chamin Nail Studio in the 1300 block of West Grand Avenue, displayed handguns and demanded property.

They fled the scene with cash and jewelry, according to police.

No injuries were reported in either robbery, authorities said.

Employees and patrons alike at both businesses were shaken in the wake of the robberies, and both salons immediately began to keep their doors locked at all times, choosing to buzz customers in.

"You can tell it's a little bit of undercurrent of nerve in there right now," a Pinky Nails customer, who did not want to show her face out of fear, said Tuesday.

"The crime has just increased and gotten out of control," she continued, adding that criminals have gotten bolder since Chicago police closed the nearby 13th precinct in 2013.

"They know that they are not patrolling this area and crime is happening now, not just in the middle of the night, but in the middle of the day," she said.

Other establishments in the area were similarly on edge, with the Burger Baron - a restaurant that sits between the two salons - issuing a warning to employees.

“It’s surprising and scary, scary,” said Maria Solberg, whose family runs the Burger Baron, and told employees "to just keep an eye of for suspicious activity maybe a group of guys at one time casing out the place.”

No one is in custody in connection with either incident and Chicago police continue to investigate.

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