Emanuel's son robbed near family's North Side home

[alp227]

Source: Chicago Tribune

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s 17-year-old son was robbed near the family's home on the North Side on Friday night, according to a Chicago police report.

Zach Emanuel was talking on his cellphone on the street in the 4200 block of North Hermitage Avenue in the Ravenswood neighborhood when two males approached him from behind, according to the police report.

One of them "placed his arm around the victim's neck in a rear chokehold," and the second one struck the teen with a fist, knocking him to the ground. The robbers took the teen’s cellphone and patted him down, the police report said.

"The offenders then asked the victim, 'What else you got?' (and) forced the victim to enter his security code to unlock the phone," the police report said.

Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-rahm-emanuel-son-robbed-20141220-story.html

[philosslayer]

1. Very unfortunate

Hope the young man is alright.

[uppityperson]

3. yup lg, leaving out race happens sooo often.

[alcibiades_mystery]

4. Just for context, that's one of the most affluent areas in Chicago, perhaps even the whole state

Especially where he is on Hermitage. I pass the Mayor's house pretty much everyday to drop my son off at school. Hermitage from Irving Park to Lawrence is stocked with giant homes, many newly renovated. Two to three million is not an unrealistic asking price over there. 4200 north on Hermitage is Berteau, literally steps from the Mayor's house. Which is weird, because there is always a manned police unit parked outside his house, pretty much every time I've passed it. Maybe it's not there at night. But if it is, this kid got robbed probably less than 200 feet from cops there to protect the family!

There have been a number of similar robberies along the Brown line stops from Irving Park to Francisco in recent months. It might be the same two guys. A guy got robbed much the same way near the Rockwell stop on the Brown line recently, on a night when there were several robberies in the same vicinity. The theory is that these guys have a car, but cruise for people walking home from the Brown Line stops at Irving Park, Montrose, Damen, Western, Rockwell - aiming primarily for younger professionals and people on phones.

[jwirr]

6. I think that open crime like this taking place in such an affluent neighborhood is a very bad sign

of how had it is in Chicago.

[alcibiades_mystery]

7. People get robbed in all major cities

I live less than three miles from there. It seems remarkably peaceful, actually. Of course, I grew up in NYC in the 80's, so I know what a city out of control actually looks like.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

10. You go where the traffic and money and iPhones are walking around.

There isn't much distance or barriers between the affluent and not so affluent areas.

I live right near wrigley field where there a lot of what my dad would call "jack pot" robberies. Drunks staggering home from the bars get punched in the back of the head and relieved of their phones and wallets. It's happened to a few friends and I witnessed one right in front of my house few years ago.

I wouldn't be surprised if there is an upswing in crime (graffiti seems to be on the upswing) but these strong arm robberies have always been around.

It's best not to walk around with a phone stuck to the ear or ear buds stuck in your ears.

[jwirr]

12. Okay, I guess I am just a country girl.

[LiberalArkie]

5. They should have found the guys real quick. You have to enter your AppleID passcode

to turn off Find My iPhone.

[former9thward]

8. Must of been a quick robbery or the cops were sleeping.

There are two squads, one in front of the home and one in back, 24/7. Plus there are cameras on both ends of the block.

[alcibiades_mystery]

11. Yup

Apparently the cops were there, as the kid walked up and told them of the robbery right afterward. Crazy. He was no more than 350 feet from the unit at any time if he was on the 4200 block, and *much* closer if he was south of Rahm's house (towards Berteau). It's only maybe another 75 yards to the Cullom intersection. These robbers got damn lucky.

I pass that house every week day. The cruiser is always there in front (I often pass on a shift change, which must come around 8am or 8:15).

[OrwellwasRight]

9. I first read the headline as saying Rahm Emanuel's son did the robbing

Was going to make a snarky remark about Rahm maybe not being so smug and maybe this'll take him down a peg.

Advice to self: read more carefully!