Thieves rob restaurant at gunpoint Chicago's Northwest Side
CHICAGO (CBS) – Chicago police are searching for three men who robbed a restaurant at gunpoint in the Portage Park neighborhood Thursday night.
It happened just before midnight at Gracie O'Malley's in the 4000 block of North Milwaukee Avenue.
The restaurant was open at the time of the robbery.
No injuries were reported.
Gracie O'Malley's was expected to be open Friday night to host a holiday-themed drag show. Minutes before the robbery, the same crew of suspects may have tried and failed to rob another restaurant nearby, CBS 2's Noel Brennan reported.
The simple habit of locking doors may have prevented a robbery at Margaret's restaurant, just minutes away from Gracie O'Malley's.
"When I'm alone, during the day, during the night, when I have customers, when I don't have customers, the door, it's locked," said Margaret Rzadkowski, the owner of Margaret's.
Rzadkowski said she was working at her restaurant late Thursday night with a few customers inside and that she saw three young men in hoodies and masks walking up to her front door. They made it through one of the two doors, but Rzadkowski had locked the second door.
She said the young men left when they couldn't get inside.
"I was very lucky," Rzadlowski said.
Minutes later was when Gracie O'Malley's was robbed.
"I heard that they took over the entire place," Rzadkowski said. "They asked everybody to get down on the floor, and I felt very lucky that it wasn't me."
CBS 2 has been tracking similar crimes at bars and restaurants recently. Last month, gunmen robbed the Chipp Inn in Noble Square for the second time in three months. Police did not say whether the recent robberies were at all connected.
Rzadkowski was grateful her customers are OK.
"I only had three and we were all really shaken," she said.
Police have not announced any arrests in the case.