Elderly Couple Robbed; Fourth Home Invasion Targeting Senior Citizens
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago police are warning people to be careful and to lock their doors and windows after yet another home invasion targets senior citizens.
This is the fourth such incident on the Northwest side in the past week.
In this incident, the couple was not injured. But they told CBS 2's Sandra Torres they are shaken, and fear they will have to move, despite having lived in their home for 44 years.
"He says, 'give me your money, and your jewelry, and your pills or else,'" Stanley Markowsky said of the moment he saw a stranger standing inside his home in the middle of the night.
Chicago police say around 1 a.m., a man used a kitchen window to invade the home, located in the 5100 block of West Wellington.
"He took me to the room and my wife had jewelry in there. Then he took a pillow case and started putting stuff in there," Markowsky said.
The thief got away with money and jewelry, including their 60-year-old wedding rings.
Ald. Milly Santiago visited the Markowsky's Saturday morning. "It breaks my heart when these individuals are targeting seniors -- the most vulnerable people," she said.
And while police say they have good leads in the case, officers are going door-to-door warning residents in hopes of preventing them from becoming a victim.
"We want to make sure residents see a bigger presence in this area -- it's always good to see more officers, especially when something like this is going on," commander Anthony Escamilla with the Chicago Police Dept. said.
Commander Escamilla told CBS 2 that he believes these four home invasions are connected because of the description of the suspect. In each case, the suspect is described as being tall and slim, and wearing dark clothing.