Tourist Stabbed At Oak Street Beach On His First Day In Chicago
By Kate Shepherd in News on Oct 26, 2015 5:49PM
Former Royal Air Force member Neil McCarthy was stabbed at Oak Street Beach Saturday night—at the end of his first day visiting Chicago.
McCarthy, who lives in Minneapolis, and his girlfriend Carisa Lerner were spending the weekend in the city when they were allegedly robbed at the beach and by three men with a knife.
Lerner, 26, and McCarthy, 27, were walking in the 1100 block of North Lake Shore Drive around 11:50 p.m. and tried to pass through the underground tunnel to get to the beach, according to the Tribune. They were confused, turned around and decided to cross the street. Then they spotted three people when they got to a bike path near the sand.
"Three men were there waiting. They surrounded us and circled us," Lerner told the Tribune. "They were like, 'Hey give us your money, iPhones, whatever.'"
He handed over his possessions including his British passport, but they were still asking him for things. Then one of the men asked Lerner for cash and more.
"I gave him my credit cards, and then he started grabbing me and going into my pockets. He didn't believe me," she said.
McCarthy was angry they were going after Lerner and he said, "Don't hurt my girlfriend." He then jumped on the man rifling through her pockets.
"When I threw him off her, he shouted to his mates, 'Back me up, stab this guy!'" McCarthy said.
McCarthy was stabbed in the arm and his hand was sliced up as he defended himself. Police were able to catch one of the attackers at the scene.
Chicago police have charged two men for the attack. Noe Mondragon, 22, was charged with one felony count of aggravated battery/use of a deadly weapon and one felony count of armed robbery. Luis Salgado-Camargo,18, was charged with two felony counts of armed robbery, CPD said in a statement Monday.
"It's been an exciting holiday," McCarthy, who was treated and released from Northwestern Memorial Hospital, told the Tribune. "It's been quite an adventure. It was a pretty action-packed night."
Violence struck all over the city this weekend from the Gold Coast to Little Village to Rogers Park. At least 34 people were shot, and six of them were shot to death, between Friday afternoon and early Monday morning, according to the Tribune. That doesn't even include a woman who was was discovered stabbed to death in her burning home.
Four people were shot in Little Village this weekend including two people who authorities believe were not targeted and not involved in gangs. Two other people were shot in the 2200 block of South Washtenaw Avenue Sunday night following some type of crash.