Armed robberies caught on camera rattle longtime Northwest Side residents
CHICAGO (CBS) – Two violent robberies caught on camera have a Northwest Side neighborhood on edge.
Suspects in masks and carrying guns not only robbed but punched defenseless people. Both of the attacks happened in broad daylight.
CBS 2's Noel Brennan reported on how the violence had deeply affected one woman.
It may be disturbing to see victims willingly give up their property and robbers beating them anywhere in just two of a series of at least seven robberies on Thursday, police said. The crimes have rattled people who've lived in the neighborhood for decades.
After more than three decades in Avondale, one "nerve-wracking" video changed how Joanna Cintron feels at home.
"Makes you feel very at unease," she said.
It happened in the 4100 block of West Oakdale Avenue on Thursday afternoon. Cintron said the video shows her neighbor on the sidewalk targeted by two suspects with guns.
"They start digging in his pockets and then they hit him once and then, the second time they hit him, they kind of knocked him out," she said.
Cintron's neighbor was lying motionless as the suspects drove off in a gray SUV.
People eventually rushed over to help and called 911. Little did they know, it was not the first robbery.
Just minutes earlier, the same suspects targeted a man at a shopping plaza on Pulaski near West Nelson Street. They took the man to the ground at gunpoint and took everything in his pockets.
"Makes us feel not safe in our neighborhood, you know?" Cintron said.
She saw no excuse for the violence.
"If you have the time and energy to put into doing something negative, you can do it doing positive things," she said. "Find a job."
Her neighborhood may feel different, but Cintron wouldn't let this define it.
"We can't live in the fear," she said. "It can happen here. It can happen anywhere, but it's just tragedy that's happening in our neighborhood."
It's unclear how many robberies the suspects committed on Thursday. These were just two that were caught on camera.
Chicago police said detectives are investigating, and no one is in custody.