Charges were pending Tuesday against four people in connection to a stolen Hyundai that crashed into a stopped city truck in Lincoln Square Monday morning and erupted into fiery blaze.
At around 10:43 a.m., the stolen car — which officials suspect was used in at least one previous armed robbery — was located by police. The car fled from police south down Oakley Avenue when it hit the Department of Streets and Sanitation truck, Ald. Andre Vasquez, 40th, said in a video from the scene posted to his Facebook page.
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The four people in the car fled from the vehicle, police said, and there were no reported injuries from the crash.
In the video on Facebook, Vasquez said the individuals who left the on-fire vehicle hid in a nearby garage. Through a neighbor’s home security cameras, the four individuals were apprehended by police officers, he said. Police recovered three guns from the crash and the resulting arrests.
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“It’s believed they are associated with a string of robberies or carjackings in the area, but the investigations are pending,” Vasquez said in the video.
Police said it is unknown if the stolen Hyundai was used in any additional robberies. As of Tuesday afternoon, the robbery remains under investigation, and charges are pending, police said.
Ald. Matt Martin, 47th, said in a statement shared to Facebook that a vehicle matching a description of the one in the crash was involved in an armed robbery Monday morning in the 1900 block of Berteau Avenue and in another attempted robbery on the 4600 block of Ravenswood Avenue, about 1 mile away from the intersection of Oakley and Winona avenues.
Vasquez himself was driving on Foster Avenue when he turned to his left and saw the car in flames, arriving to the scene around 10:45 a.m., he told the Tribune. He said he wasn’t sure how fast the car was going before it struck the truck but said that he heard what sounded like explosions from inside the vehicle. He estimated the flames reached about 6 feet into the air and the entire car seemed to be engulfed.
“It was that level of impact,” Vasquez said.
Delia Barone, who owns the restaurant ATX Bodega on the corner of Foster Avenue and Oakley Avenue, said she saw four police cars drive past in a “high-speed chase.” The gray car appeared to be behind police cars when its driver turned and sped down Oakley, where the car crashed into the city truck after hitting a speed bump, Barone said.
“We were just kind of thankful that we just happened to be closed that day,” Barone said.
Her husband ran to the nearby fire station after they noticed the car was smoking, she said. Barone stood on the picnic tables outside her restaurant filming the aftermath, she said.
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“We were just concerned that everything was going to explode all around,” she said.
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Just before noon, Assistant Principal Alexander Zalar alerted the Eliza Chappell Elementary School community that the school went into a 10-minute lockdown, with students returning to the classroom after being outside for lunch and recess. The school then transitioned to a “soft lockdown,” in which nobody entered or exited the building. Amundsen High School also went into lockdown, Vasquez told the Tribune.
Ryan Donahue, 31, who lives off an alleyway that connects to Oakley Avenue, said he saw helicopters directly over his apartment building just after 10:30 a.m. He walked to the scene at around 12:15 p.m. and saw the car, which appeared completely burned out and smoking with the front passenger side sustaining the most damage. Based on photos taken by Donahue, the vehicle was a Hyundai Santa Fe.
Vasquez said it was helpful that neighbors close to the scene stayed connected throughout the morning and emphasized the value of home cameras.
“That all helped to get the information, and thankfully nobody got hurt,” he said.
In a public safety statement, Vasquez recommended that neighbors take advantage of the city’s program that reimburses applicants who buy home security cameras.
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“In Lincoln Square especially, for how quiet I would say it traditionally is, it was definitely a very interesting day,” Barone said.
