CHICAGO – Gunmen are luring women into robbery traps after meeting them on dating apps, Chicago police say. So far, three women have been targeted as they arrived at meeting locations in Auburn Gresham and Chatham.
According to CPD, the first woman was robbed when she arrived for a meeting in the 800 block of East 90th Street on September 15 around 6:46 p.m. Two men forced the woman into an abandoned building and robbed her at knifepoint. her gun.
They robbed the next two women at gunpoint.
On September 24, around 12:21 a.m., two men robbed a woman on the same block as the first victim, the 800 block of West 90th Street. She told police that when she arrived to meet a male friend, two men came outside, approached her from behind, pushed her into a building and robbed her.
When the third victim arrived for a meeting in the 8100 block of South Marshfield at 6 a.m. on Oct. 3, she was robbed.
In a community alert, CPD said the robberies are being committed by two or three black males between the ages of 16 and 30.
Detectives warned against meeting people soon after meeting them online.
“Someone who just wants to rob you will likely immediately insist on meeting,” police said in their warning. They also recommended meeting strangers in public locations until you know them better.
“If you arrive and a location is not as described (residential home or abandoned building), please contact the person to verify [the] address and leave when they tell you to go inside,” police advised.
Anyone with information about the crimes can contact detectives at 312-747-8273. The crime pattern is P24-02-024.
