Chicago crime: 3 boys arrested for 5 armed robberies in under an hour, police say

CHICAGO - Chicago police have charged three teenagers in connection with a robbery spree last month that involved five armed robberies in less than an hour.

What we know:

Police said the robberies began around 6:30 a.m. on June 12 in the Oakland neighborhood, when the teens approached a woman with a stun gun and demanded her car keys. They took off in her vehicle, leaving behind another car that had been reported stolen from a surrounding suburb.

Using the stolen vehicle, the teens committed four more armed robberies with the stun gun, with the last incident reported at 7:10 a.m.

The Chicago Police Department’s Helicopter Unit tracked the suspects until they crashed the stolen vehicle in the Riverdale neighborhood. Police said the teens ran into a nearby home, where SWAT officers and patrol officers from the 5th District arrested them.

The suspects are a 13-year-old boy, a 16-year-old boy, and a 17-year-old boy. Each is charged with:

• One felony count of aggravated vehicular hijacking
• Three felony counts of armed robbery with a firearm
• Four felony counts of armed robbery with another dangerous weapon
• One felony count of attempted armed robbery with another dangerous weapon
• One felony count of aggravated battery in a public place

Dig deeper:

Police said statements from the victims, as well as video evidence and physical evidence, helped the Citywide Robbery Task Force secure charges against the teens.