Six businesses on Chicago’s South Side were targeted in a series of early-morning burglaries Friday, with suspects breaking through doors and windows and taking cash registers and other valuables.
Chicago police said the incidents happened within a little more than an hour, between about 4 a.m. and 5:10 a.m. Investigators are looking into whether the burglaries were connected.
The businesses were located in the Hyde Park and Grand Boulevard areas, with several incidents occurring only minutes apart.
Police said the first reported burglary happened around 4 a.m. in the 4800 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue. Four people reportedly entered the business and took a cash register before leaving in a black SUV.
Between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m., three suspects broke the glass door of a business in the 1600 block of East 53rd Street. According to police, the suspects removed a safe containing money.
Another burglary was reported around 4:22 a.m. in the 5200 block of South Ashland Avenue.
At about 4:53 a.m., suspects reportedly forced their way into a business in the 5300 block of South Hyde Park Boulevard and took a cash register.
Police also reported a burglary in the 1500 block of East 55th Street shortly after 5 a.m. The suspects broke a glass window and left with an unknown amount of money.
The incidents involved groups ranging from one to four suspects, according to police. Investigators said the suspects used broken glass doors or windows to get inside the businesses and then left the area in a black Honda CR-V.
CBS Chicago, citing police, also reported that no arrests had been made as of Friday afternoon and that Area One detectives were investigating the cases.
The cluster of burglaries comes as Chicago police have previously issued business burglary alerts for the Hyde Park and East Hyde Park areas, advising businesses to keep doors and windows secured, maintain good lighting around their properties and preserve surveillance footage after an incident.
Anyone who may have information about Friday’s burglaries is asked to contact Chicago police at 312-747-8380. Anonymous tips can also be submitted through CPDTip.com.
