Police warn of robbery spree by armed men in surgical masks

A group of armed, masked men robbed several people early Thursday in Bucktown, Lincoln Park and on the Near West Side, according to Chicago Police.

In each hold-up, three or four men got out of a white Audi SUV, pulled out handguns and demanded property from pedestrians before driving off, police said in a community alert.

The first robbery happened sometime between midnight and 12:35 a.m. in the 1600 block of West Armitage, followed by another between 12:15 a.m. and 12:25 a.m. in the 2300 block of North Sheffield, police said. A third robbery occurred about 12:30 a.m. in the 2500 block of North Sheffield, followed by a fourth 10 minutes later in the 900 block of South Western.

The suspects were described as a group of four to five men between 18 and 22 years old, police said. One of them was wearing a burgundy hooded sweatshirt, while another was wearing an orange hoodie.

All of the suspects who got out of the SUV were armed with handguns and wearing surgical masks, police said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Area North detectives at (312) 744-8263.