Police Warn CTA Riders To Stay Alert Following Series Of Near North Robberies
CHICAGO (CBS)-- Chicago police want CTA riders to stay alert following a series of robberies in the Near North neighborhood.
The latest incident took place at the Chicago Street Red Line station.
Police believe the same person, who looks to only be about 17 years old according to his victims, has robbed four people in the last three weeks.
The offender approaches riders and forces them to hand over their belongings.
It's the same old story for some riders and they're sick of hearing it.
This warning comes just hours after a packed meeting about attacks on the CTA in Lakeview Wednesday night.
There was plenty of emotion among the audience at CPD's 19th District station on West Addison Street.
Several riders showed up to share their concerns about recent crime on the transit system, including one woman who suffered a mild concussion after being attacked two days after Christmas.
CBS 2 looked at the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas and found the number of arrests on the CTA has risen by more than 42%.
There were 145 arrests during that time frame this year, compared to 102 from the year before.