Wicker Park And Bucktown Residents Concerned Over Carjackings
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The numbers keep growing. Today, two more victims added to Chicago's carjacking crisis, and police say the crimes are connected.
CBS 2's Tara Molina has been tracking and investigating the more than 1,200 carjacking's this year.
One of today's carjacking's happened in a neighborhood that keeps getting hit, the Wicker Park and Bucktown areas. This is where the first of two connected carjacking's happened this morning.
Now, we're hearing from a community group that says it's so bad people don't even want to leave their homes anymore.
"Our community is under siege."
Steve Jensen says people have had it. He represents the Bucktown Community Organization.
"How many more people have to be shot, traumatized, and scared out of their wits before substantial change is made."
With another carjacking here early Friday on West Churchill Street, police say three men put a gun to a driver's neck and took off with their car, cell phone, and wallet. The same group hit again just hours later a few miles away - The same thing played out all over again on North Lockwood Avenue in Cragin.
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Police say the three men are in a white Chevy Equinox with a Florida license plate.
These two carjacking's bring Chicago's total to 1,208 this year, the city averaging more than three a day. With the Bucktown and Wicker Park area recently hit, that makes 35 this year - More than double the 15 reported in 2020.
With fear and frustration at a boiling point, residents voiced their concerns at a community meeting on carjacking's days ago.
"People are staying in the house. The last three weeks the level of fear in this neighborhood has peaked," said Jensen.
They said whatever is in place is not working.
"A cop can't be on every corner, or on every alley to catch a carjacking in action," said Jensen.
This neighborhood is calling on the city to come together and try something else.
"There's a reason these kids aren't doing bank robberies. They know there are severe consequences in that realm," said Jensen.
At that meeting earlier this week, Chicago Police assured residents there would be more officers patrolling this area.
Steve says he's seen cops in his neighborhood, but others in the community say they noticed no difference.