CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Three 14-year-olds face felony charges in connection to a string of carjackings across Chicago, including one teen accused in nine carjackings and robberies since July.
Two of the defendants are 14-year-old girls charged in a Wednesday carjacking in Lawndale, Chicago police said.
The pair allegedly put a man in a chokehold and forced him out of the car in the 3400 block of West Douglas Boulevard.
One teen was arrested after a short foot chase, while the other was arrested 20 minutes later in the block where the carjacking happened, police said.
Another teen, who was on home electronic monitoring for another charge, is accused in nine separate carjackings and car thefts in July and January.
Police said he’s accused in incidents in Calumet Heights, Bronzeville, Chatham, Avalon Park and Kenwood.
The incidents happened:
• in the 8800 block of South Luella;
• in the 1600 block of East 92nd Pl.;
• in the 8900 block of South Constance;
• in the 600 block of East Bowen;
• in the 2600 block of East 91st Street;
• in the 7900 block of South State;
• in the 8800 block of South East End;
• in the 8600 block of South University;
• in the 4400 block of South Oakenwald.
In the most recent incident in Kenwood, an off-duty police officer was getting out of her car when four males with guns exited a red vehicle and and approached her. The carjackers took the woman’s purse and phone, police said. Some drove off in her car and others in the hatchback. A source told CBS 2 the officer’s gun and star were also taken. She was not injured.
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The teen was arrested shortly after 3 p.m. Wednesday in Park Manor after a “brief foot pursuit” in the 7100 block of South Indiana Avenue.
He was charged five felony counts of vehicular hijacking with a firearm, two felony counts of armed robbery with a firearm, one felony count of unlawful use of a weapon, one felony count of possessing a stolen vehicle, one felony count of robbery, and one felony count of aggravated assault with use of a deadly weapon.
A judge on Thursday ordered that he be held until his next court date.
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The teen was caught by CPD’s Vehicular Hijacking Task Force.
The judge told him: “Look, you’re 14, you’ve got an opportunity to change the path you’re on in life.”
The teen is scheduled to appear in juvenile court on Feb. 2.
As of last week, there had been some 165 carjackings in Chicago in 2021.