Males robbed, carjacked on West Side during online dating meet-ups
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) - An armed group of six people has been luring males to meet up through dating websites before robbing them over the past three months in the Lawndale and West Garfield Park neighborhoods.
Each time, a male showed up alone to a location expecting to meet a female from the internet — usually for sex, according to a community alert from Chicago police.
But instead, four males and two females were waiting to rob him at gunpoint of his belongings and, sometimes, his vehicle, police said. At least two of the males were armed with handguns.
The incidents occurred:
- Jan. 11, Jan. 8, about 10:15 p.m. Dec. 28, about 10:57 p.m. Dec. 24, about 11:20 p.m. Dec. 15, about 6:15 p.m. Dec. 1, about 7:30 p.m. Nov. 15, about 7:30 p.m. and 10:50 a.m. Nov. 15, and about 3:35 p.m. Oct. 24 in the 4200 block of West Wilcox;
- about 9:30 p.m. Oct. 26 in the 3800 block of West Polk;
- about 8:35 p.m. Oct. 23 in the 3900 block of West Lexington;
- about 9:30 p.m. Oct. 22 in the 700 block of South Springfield;
- about 3:38 a.m. Oct. 13 in the 3800 block of West Lexington; and
- about 10:25 p.m. Oct. 11 in the 700 block of South Independence.
Anyone with information on the crimes is asked to call Area North detectives at (312) 744-8263.