The incidents happened early Wednesday morning in the South Loop, Loop, Gold Coast, and Lincoln Park:
The victims, all males between the ages of 18 and 44, have similar descriptions of the suspects, police said. The 18-year-old victim, a Columbia College student, was beaten.
"It's scary, because a lot of people actually chase you down, you know, if you say, 'No, I will not give you money.' They will actually walk and follow you down two blocks just to try to get money off of you," said Matt Thompson, student. "People are desperate.
Police said two to four men carried out the "strong arm" robberies in each case. They stole money, mp3 players, cell phones and a backpack from victims. A gun was pointed at a victim in the 600 West Adams incident.
"It's like, oh, she's a target, she has the purse, phone, and everything. Yeah, I should put the stuff away," said pedestrian Davida Cole. "I think it makes me more aware to probably like watch where I'm going and what time I'm going out or whatever, but I don't go out past dark anyways."
Police said the man who was attacked on Michigan Avenue was walking from the CTA Red Line when he was tapped on the shoulder and struck multiple times in the face. The suspects got his cell phone.
"There's always people down here. I come back from the train station a lot, you know, at midnight or one in the morning, and there's always people down here," said Tyler Lamarr.
The suspects range from 17- to 30-years old. In one case, a suspect wore a green hoodie, in another a suspect was riding in a white, older model minivan.
Some victims were bruised and had to be treated at a hospital, but no one was seriously hurt.
