It’s unclear when their illegal shopping spree began, but I became aware of the crimes at 6 p.m.
Merchandise was stolen from Filene’s Basement, 830 North Michigan Avenue; A/X Armani Exchange, 520 North Michigan Avenue; and The North Face store at 875 North Michigan Avenue.
According to police, the bandits carried their stolen loot in Hollister Co. shopping bags.
At 6:30 p.m., a Chicago police officer announced over his radio that three suspects were arrested. One of the offenders is a female.
Subsequent police radio announcements indicated at least 10 of the 20 suspects were in custody.
Authorities recovered some of the merchandise from all three stores.
Unconfirmed reports suggest the shoplifters may have verbally threatened and shoved store employees.
UPDATE: As of 7:36 p.m., 11 offenders are in custody.
"20 as young as 13"? No red flags there. It's no wonder that when african americans walk into retail stores, the employees go on high alert because of people like these ghetto thugs! They ruin it for the good citizens who actually pay for their items rather than steal them. Plus we ALL end up paying more to make up for the loss. I'm sure these lowlifes will only get a slap on the wrist whereas, IF we had a law that held the parents responsible for their children's actions there would be a double whammy as far as punishment and than, just maybe, the parents of these roving ghetto thugs might step to the plate and actually be PARENTS for a change. I won't hold my breath though.
ReplyDeleteTowanda, police are still doing the paper work on this incident. A lot of officers were used to round up these miscreants.
ReplyDeleteAt least 9 suspects are still on the loose. I'm sure the little brats will be downtown tomorrow!
By the way, I wonder how many times this has to happen downtown, before it makes mainstream news.
ReplyDeleteWell, that answer is clear Timothy..NEVER! You're the only one who gives us all a heads up BUT can't have the tourists knowing they are being "hunted" or that the stores they like to spend money in are being robbed blind by ghetto thugs!
ReplyDeleteOOPs, I meant to say, it NEVER gets reported but I'm sure has happened more times than we can count. That 7/11 on Michigan was hit a couple weeks ago by a bunch of ghetto thugs and NOT ONE WORD on the news.
ReplyDeleteOccasionally, Second City Cop and Chicago Breaking News report these crimes, especially if it's Taste of Chicago.
ReplyDeleteThis junk happens all of the time in every city. My parents live in a smaller city and stores there are constantly combatting shoplifting from teenagers and, GASP, most of these teenagers doing the shoplifting are white. To further the similarities, it doesn't make the news there when it happens. It isn't because the news is biased/corrupt (because I would actually agree on that point, but not in this instance) but more because it happens nearly everyday.
ReplyDeleteI will say it again, the comments on this site just come across as a mix of insanely paranoid and racist. I appreciate the work of listing where crimes take place since I live in the area but the rhetoric being spewed in the comments is edging on absurd.
Again I say to you Joseph, IF you don't like the replies, why read the comments? You must be pretty new to the city, not a "native". Those of us who have lived here for decades and those who are "natives" have seen a tremendous uptick in crime, beatings, robbery, muggings and shootings and DO NOT LIKE IT. Your cavalier attitude and no big deal approach is not part of the solution, it is part of the problem. So it happens all the time where your parents live, does that mean you think it's no big deal? Does that mean nothing should be done about it and the residents should just accept it? I for one, do not like the direction the city I'm from is taking. I also do not let the gangsters keep me from enjoying the city I love BUT I am not stupid either. What do you do to help with the crime issue where you live? Accepting it or "looking the other way" IS NOT HELPING. When people DO NOTHING, NOTHING changes and personally, I think your comments are "edging on absurd" but they are your opinions and I respect that. Try reading Uptown Update and see how the residents of that neighborhood feel about all the crime in that area and see what they do about it. The comments on this blog are certainly not unique or isolated. People are beginning to get fearful EVERYWHERE and even black people use the "n" word and "ghetto thug"..it is not a racist thing, just calling it as it is.
ReplyDeleteJoseph: Sur shoplifting occurrs all the time and by all races. The difference in the original story above is that the store was invaded by a large gang of thugs who intimidate the workers and customers, create chaos and then steal en masse. In addition this is taking place in an area that is considered the jewell of the city and frequented by tourists as well as locals. Comparing this to the a normal everyday shoplifting incident is illogical.
ReplyDeleteFace this Joseph: If the criminals race is not clearly identified, in Chicago at least, that means the criminal is black. The media is trying to pretend to be non-racist, but they are really just covering up crimes committed by blacks. Wilding at Taste of Chicago, mobs of kids shoplifting, it's not racist to notice the obvious. These are black criminals. The media is doing a disservice to all innocent white kids when they fail to indicate the race of the offenders. All kids (hispanic, caucasian, etc.) are lumped in with what is clearly a black phenomenon. They should give the proper information, so people will know what to watch out for, not be afraid to offend the black criminals with a more specific warning to people.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous@10:16, I agree with you about the media covering things up and the disservice it does to the citizens of this city BUT it's ALL about the money. Imagine what would happen if ALL the crime going on on Michigan Ave. and River North were reported? Tourists would stop going as I'm sure many of the residents have done already. That area has multi millionaires and billionaires living there and don't mind spending the money they have and yet, business is down? I doubt it's just because of the economy because the "rich always get richer".
ReplyDeleteJoseph, we are discussing Black Crime on Chicago's Michigan Avenue, not White Crime in your parents' small hometown.
ReplyDeleteChicago does a GREAT job of "covering" it's very violent crime.
ReplyDeleteActually, the "it's" should read as --> its' . :)
ReplyDelete