Blotter: 'Pimply' Punks Beat CTA Rider

The following items are based on police reports from Chicago's 19th Police District.

The district provides police protection on Chicago's north side, from Lawrence Avenue on the north, Fullerton Avenue on the south, the Chicago River on the west and Lake Michigan on the east. 

Saturday, Jan. 26

Man Claims to be Stabbed in Lake View

Police were called to MacNeal Memorial Hospital in Oak Park where a 22-year-old Bolingbrook man claimed he was stabbed in Lake View. The man told police he was at a bar on the corner of Belmont Avenue and Clark Street around 3 a.m. when he stepped out for a cigarette and was cut with a three-inch knife on the chest. He could not give any additional details about the bar or the suspect.

The man told investigators he flagged a cab to the hospital rather than calling 911, and police say he was “uncooperative with actual events of incident.” The man was on his way out of the hospital when they arrived to question him, the report says.

Man Beaten, Robbed Near Southport CTA Stop

A 32-year-old Lake View man called police Saturday when three men jumped him near the Southport CTA train station and stole his iPhone, according to a police report. The man says he was walking in the 1300 block of West Roscoe Street around 2:20 a.m. when the trio, believed to be between 25 and 28 years old, started hitting him in the head and kicking him.

That’s when one of the suspects picked him up off the ground and said, “Give us your s--t or we’ll hit you again,” the report says. The man gave away his phone, and the three suspects fled west on Roscoe. Police searched the area but weren't able to immediately find the men. 

Sunday, Jan. 27

Man Dragged from Boystown Bar, Kicks Officer

Chicago police placed one man in custody over the weekend when he punched a security guard in the face, kicked an officer in the kneecap and was dragged from a popular Boystown bar, police say.

Anthony Harper, 26, was arrested at Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted St., and was charged with one count of aggravated battery of a police officer and one count of simple battery, according to Chicago Police News Affairs. Harper’s home address is in Brooklyn, New York.

• Read the full story here on Lake View Patch.

Knife-Wielding Man Robs Woman on Belmont

Police were called to the corner of West Belmont Avenue and North Clark Street Sunday when someone reported seeing a man with a knife. But just before arriving, they were notified that the same man was robbing a 22-year-old woman at the Belmont CTA train station. Police said that when they arrived around 11:40 p.m., they were met by other officers and the victim.

The woman told police she was walking on Belmont from North Sheffield Avenue when a bearded man holding a folding knife approached her and said, “Give me your purse.” She handed over her things, and the bearded man ran west toward North Racine Avenue. That’s when she rushed to the train station and reported the crime. Police searched the area, but didn’t find the suspect.

Friday, Jan. 25

Thugs Rob Teen Exiting Rush Hour Train

A teenager and his father called police last week to report that the teen was robbed while getting off a rush hour train.

The 15-year-old victim said two suspects approached him around 5:40 p.m. Jan. 25 on the CTA platform at 1815 W. Irving Park Road in Northcenter. They cornered him while he was in the south stairway of the terminal, he said, and blocked him from moving forward.

• Read the full story here on North Center-Roscoe Village Patch.

Friday, Jan. 25

Police Arrest 1 of 2 Sunnyside Armed Robbers

Police were only able to find half of a two-man duo Friday who they said committed an armed robbery in Lincoln Square.

The pair robbed a 42-year-old woman around 11 p.m. that night in the 1900 block of West Sunnyside Avenue, according to the police report. Officers reportedly saw the victim screaming and waving her hands while they were on their way to another call.

• Read the full story here on Lincoln Square Patch.

Friday, Jan. 25

'Pimply Faced' Punks Pummel CTA Rider, Police Say

Police said a group of "pimply faced" offenders attacked a Red Line rider last week who was trying to get one of them to stop vandalizing the train car.

The 26-year-old victim, who lives in Logan Square, told police that he was aboard the Red Line around 11:15 p.m. Jan. 25, heading toward its Belmont Avenue stop. In his car was a group of about 10 men between the ages of 18 and 21 years old who were drinking beer, the report said.

• Read the full story here on Bucktown-Wicker Park Patch.