Old Town burglary spree: More than 10 businesses targeted along Wells Street

Well, Anita, we just spoke to Alderman Brian Hopkins. He says police chased the suspects, but they had to stop because of the police department's no-pursuit policy. So he's now asking the police department to invest in better technology to be able to track down suspects without putting anyone else at risk. Take a look at this video. Several business owners along Well Street woke up to broken windows and damaged storefronts. According to police, the crime spree happened just before 4 this morning. Alderman Brian Hopkins says three men got out of a white Honda SUV and targeted more than 10 businesses. Chicago police say they received six reports, and it appears thieves got away with some cash registers. Alderman Hopkins says officers responded and initially pursued the suspects, but were later ordered to stop the chase on Lakeshore Drive under CPD's no-pursuit policy. Hopkins says he wants the city to invest in technology like drones and GPS tracking systems, which he believes could help police follow suspects without dangerous high speed pursuits. These are young teenagers that are doing this. There's a couple of crews that are active right now and the one thing that we know they're aware of our policy that we can't pursue them. So they think their chances of getting caught are zero. They have no fear and they're very emboldened by this. We have to change this to have the offenders insight and have the patrol car following them to Lakeshore Drive and then to be ordered to stand down and let the criminals The metal's escape is just unconscionable. The damage is measured in the millions of dollars. So this is a very expensive repair job for these businesses. No word tonight on any arrest. Police are asking that if anyone out there has any information, police want to hear from you. We do know police are actively in the area looking for any surveillance footage or any tips that could help them. Anita. Well, Leslie, I've seen in some instances where business owners kind of come together to try to come up with something to do to protect themselves. Are you hearing anything like that in terms of conversation that's happening there? Yeah, I think that's the frustrating part, Alderman Hopkins says business owners are doing everything as they're supposed to exactly what they're supposed to be doing. They're not leaving any cash at the cash registers are closing up, they have surveillance cameras and they're reporting any type of crime and this is still happening, right? So Alderman Hopkins did say that police are gonna be in the area through the night just to make sure that this doesn't happen again. But again, if anyone out there has any information or any surveillance, I'm sure those business owners will appreciate the increased presence tonight at least. We appreciate it.