Burglars ram truck into Louis Vuitton store in Chicago; bystander killed in rollover crash involving getaway car
Burglars rammed a truck into a Louis Vuitton store in Chicago, stealing luxury goods from the business. An innocent bystander was later killed in a crash involving a getaway car, authorities said.
The incident occurred at about 4:53 a.m. along the famed Magnificent Mile.
Police said a group of suspects crashed a pick-up truck into the Louis Vuitton store on East Walton Street.
Cellphone video from a witness captured the moment thieves rammed the vehicle into the luxury store.
The video then shows a group of people dressed in dark clothing rush into the store and then run out with stolen items.
The people are then seen getting into other vehicles that were either parked nearby or that pulled up. All the cars then sped away.
Police said one of the getaway vehicles, a Kia Stinger, fled southbound on Michigan Avenue, where it was involved in a crash with a Honda CR-V at Ohio Street.
The driver of the Honda, a man in his 40s who was not involved in the burglary, was transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
Five suspects from the Kia were taken into custody and transported to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
"They hit the car that was coming this way that was coming the other way, and they just smashed into each other," witness Harry Lipman said.
Police said another getaway vehicle fled southbound on DuSable Lake Shore Drive, where it lost control and four suspects fled on foot. Two suspects were taken into custody and two others escaped, police said.
No injuries were reported and items from the burglary were located in the vehicle.
This is the second break-in in the Gold Coast over the last few weeks.
"These are not victimless crimes, these are dangerous crimes and the people who continue to perpetrate them need to be prosecuted and jailed for lengthy sentences," Alderman Brian Hopkins said. "We are done tolerating it."
The heist remains under investigation.
