Bucktown attackers beat man in broad daylight amid string of Chicago robberies: VIDEO

3 robberies happen within 10 minutes in Bucktown on Tuesday afternoon: Chicago police

ByJohn Garcia, Tre Ward, and ABC7 Chicago Digital Team WLS logo
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Video shows NW Side attack in broad daylight amid string of robberies
A Bucktown, Chicago robbery and attack was caught on video in broad daylight.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The victim was enjoying the nice weather on Monday, eating lunch in the alley next to a church, when two men attacked him, punching him and knocking him to the ground.



ABC7 froze the video before the first punch landed. After a struggle, the thieves took off with his wallet and other valuables. The video was captured by a security camera.



"It was his first day on the job. He was just going out to lunch, and this happened to him," said neighbor Gene Pierson.



The victim was taken to a nearby hospital listed in stable condition. While the attack happened in the middle of the afternoon, the violent robberies continued through the night and early Tuesday morning.



Hours after the Bucktown attack, police said two suspects tied up employees inside an AT&T store in Lincoln Park. Thieves reportedly took off with phones and other electronics.



Then, overnight, three men robbed a man at gunpoint near Sacramento and Carroll, stealing his wallet and backpack.



A short time later, a few block away at Abdeen and Hubbard, three men stole the same items at gunpoint from another man. Police have not said whether they believe any of these incidents are related. The suspects in several of the robberies drove a white SUV.


And, there were more.



Around 2 a.m. Tuesday, police said three men got out of a grey SUV and took a man's phone and wallet at gunpoint.



Around a half hour later, near Kimball and Addison in Avondale, two guys got out of an SUV and ripped off a man in a store parking lot.



"It's a horrible thing to see anyone go through," Pierson said. "It's a shame you have to walk looking over your shoulder, every step you take."



Later Tuesday, a developing investigation lead detectives inside of a physical therapy facility on Western in Bucktown to speak with Aubrie Purtell.



Three more robberies happened within 10 minutes in Bucktown on Tuesday afternoon, Chicago police said.


She said her client's husband was robbed after just dropping off his wife.



"He said a silver car pulled up as he was walking back from his car. A guy got out, had a gun, not even trying to hide it. He just held it straight out," Purtell said.



It happened around 2:20 p.m. near Moffat and Milwaukee.



Purtell said the 35-year-old parked his car there, and was on a business call, walking back to the facility, when, police said, two suspects robbed him at gunpoint.



That man's robbery was one of at least three that happened in Bucktown, police said, within just a 10-minute period on Tuesday afternoon.



One woman, who asked ABC7 to conceal her identity, said she was forced to hide behind a dumpster when the masked gunmen pulled up on a member of her church near an alley on Wabansia by Francisco Avenue just before 2:30 p.m.



She said that's when a second man, her neighbor, came outside after forgetting his house keys.



"He had his key in the gate, then he forgot he had the key, came back out and that's when a guy came and put the gun on his chest," she said.



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