Four charged after downtown police chase

Four people have been charged with robbing a store before leading police on a chase from the Near North Side to the Loop during rush hour Thursday evening.

Keyana Palmer, 19, of the 1100 block of West 79th Street, was charged with one felony count each of aggravated battery and retail theft, according to a statement from Chicago Police. Ebonie Collins, 18, of the 7500 block of South Essex, was also charged with one felony count of retail theft.

Curry Williams, 24, of the 5600 block of South Lowe, was charged with one misdemeanor count of attempted retail theft while 18-year-old Anthony Hayes, was cited for various traffic violations, police said. Hayes lives in the 9200 block of South Albany in Evergreen Park.

About 2:40 p.m., the four grabbed items from a store in the 1600 block of North Wells Street then threw an employee to the ground as they ran to a gray Nissan waiting outside, according to Chicago Police.

Officers later spotted the car near Chicago Avenue and State Street and tried to stop the Nissan, police said.

The driver led officers on a chase, and the Nissan hit several vehicles before it was stopped just before 6:30 p.m. near Randolph Street and Stetson Avenue, police said.

No one was injured during the chase, police said.

Palmer and Collins appeared in bond court Friday, but their bond information was not immediately available.