Police: Man chased 13-year-old girl near Little Village school

Police are searching for a man who put his arm around a 13-year-old girl’s neck and then chased her when she escaped on her way to a Little Village School last week on the Southwest Side.

About 9:15 a.m. on April 22, the girl was walking in the 2500 block of South Harding to Little Village Academy, 2620 S. Lawndale, when a Hispanic man in his 40s or 50s walked up to her and asked for a dollar, according to a community alert from Chicago Police.

She walked away, but the man put his arm around her neck, the alert said. The girl then kicked him in the knee and ran off to school.

The suspect briefly gave chase and then took off in another direction, police said. Another student reported a suspicious person nearby on the same morning.

Police said he is about 5-foot-4 and 150 pounds with black hair and eyes. He was wearing a black baseball cap, a red jacket with a dark blue Air Jordan logo, blue jeans and white Nike gym shoes.

Little Village Academy posted a warning to students and parents on its website, urging children to avoid walking in alleys.

“To all of our Little Village students and families, please be safe and aware of your surroundings when walking to school. Make sure that you walk with someone you know, and on the sidewalk,” the school’s statement said.

Anyone with information should call Area Central detectives at (312) 744-8380.