West Side Police nab 5 animals in 'L' stop robberies

Austin District police used CTA video surveillance footage to track down and arrest five people responsible for a string of robberies at or near a West Side “L” stop this spring.
Those arrested have been charged in robberies at or near the Cicero Avenue Green Line stop dating back to March, and police are investigating whether they might be responsible for other robberies.
The district robbery team figured out there was a pattern of robberies around the stop and were able to use video surveillance and stills from the video to track down the five.
On March 19 about 10 p.m., three men went up a 22-year-old man on the “L” platform, and one of the men hit the victim in the head with a gun and took his tote bag, which contained the man’s cell phone and computer, Mirabelli said. The three then fled the area.
This week, police arrested Raymond LeFlore, 19, of the 4500 block of West Fulton Street, in the 1900 block of West Van Buren Street, and Darius Nash, 17, also of the 4500 block of West Fulton, near Nash’s home.
They and a 16-year-old boy are charged with armed robbery with a firearm in the attack on the platform.
Judge Donald Panarese Jr. set bail at $200,000 each today for Nash, LeFlore, and the 16-year-old, Keith Richardson of Chicago, who was charged as an adult.
On May 15 about 10:50 a.m., a woman was riding an “L” train near Cicero Avenue and a teenage boy hit her and stole her iPhone, then ran off the train at the Cicero stop.
On May 18 about 10:10 a.m., another woman was riding the “L” and a teenage boy struck her and tried to grab her bag but fled without being able to take it from her.
Police investigating the May 18 attempted robbery were able to arrest Robert Harrison, 17, of the 4900 block of West Ferdinand Street, on May 31, and he appeared in bond court on June 1. After his arrest, they tied him to the May 15 robbery He’s being held in Cook County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail.
Finally, on May 25 about 10:45 p.m., a 25-year-old woman was outside the “L” stop on the street, talking on her iPhone when a man came up, forcibly took the phone from her and fled.
On Wednesday about 9:15 a.m., police arrested Joseph White, 21, of the 7600 block of South Coles Avenue, in the 4500 block of West Fulton Street at or near where Nash lives. White was charged in the May 25 robbery and was scheduled to appear in bond court today