Police Warn Of Pistol-Whipping Near CTA Division Street Stop

By Rachel Cromidas in News on Mar 2, 2016 6:39PM

Police are warning about a spate of robberies on the West Side after someone pistol-whipped a passerby near the CTA Blue Line Division stop last month.

The incident, in which a man was hit in the head with a handgun used as a baton, reportedly took place 1:28 a.m. Feb. 21 in the 1200 block of North Ashland Avenue, according to a police alert released this week. The alert also describes two other robberies in which a group of men approached people on the street, flashed a handgun, stole their property and fled in a dark-colored 1990s Chevy Blazer SUV. The other incidents were reported in the 1200 block of North Spaulding Avenue in Humboldt Park.

The robbers were described to police as between two and four black men ages 15 to 30 years old, between 5'5" and 5'11" tall and weighing 120 to 160 lbs., and wearing black or blue sweatshirts.