Armed robbers hit 3 businesses in 30 minutes overnight: police

CHICAGO - Three businesses were held up by armed robbers in a half-hour time span Tuesday night in Bucktown, Back of the Yards and Pilsen, police said.

The robberies followed a similar pattern: Three men entered the businesses with handguns and demanded property from employees or customers inside, according to Chicago police.

The first heist happened in the 1800 block of West 47th Street in the Back of the Yards around 9:50 p.m. The gunmen demanded property from employees, stole money from the cash register and fled the scene, police said.

Around 20 minutes later, a business in the 1100 block of West 18th Street in Pilsen was targeted in a similar way. Three gunmen demanded property from employees and customers inside the business, and struck one of the employees in the head with a handgun, police said. The employee declined medical attention, and the robbers escaped.

Around 10:20 p.m., three men entered a business in the 2000 block of North Damen Avenue in Bucktown, demanded property and took money from the cash register before leaving, police said.

No one is in custody from any of the robberies, and detectives are investigating.