Police are warning about several recent robberies in West Side neighborhoods.
Two armed robberies were reported last Friday and Saturday, Area North detectives said in a community alert. In each case, a suspect held someone up at gunpoint in the early afternoon hours.
One robbery happened about 1:15 p.m. Friday in the 4200 block of West Cortez, in the Humboldt Park neighborhood, while the second happened about 1:20 p.m. Saturday in the 900 block of North Cicero, in Austin.
The suspect in both cases is described as a black man between 18 and 30, about 5-foot-10 to 6-foot-1 and between 150 and 180 pounds, police said.
Three other robberies have been reported in the West Garfield Park neighborhood, in which a suspect displayed a blunt object, or punched victims before taking purses and wallets, police said.
Those robberies happened at 8:25 p.m. Dec. 13 in the 100 block of South Keeler, about 6:15 p.m. Dec. 13 in the 4000 block of West Madison and 1 p.m. Dec. 16 in the 4000 block of West Madison, police said.
The suspect in those three robberies is described as a black man between 5-foot and 5-foot-9, between 130 and 140 pounds, police said.
Police are cautioning residents to pay attention to their surroundings, and be on the lookout for anyone loitering in the area.
Anyone with information on any of the robberies is asked to contact detectives at (312) 744-8263.
