Workers worry about rising crime
By Asal Rezaei
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CHICAGO (WBBM) — A robbery in the middle of State Street in River North early Saturday morning left two men hurt, and businesses on edge.
As CBS 2’s Asal Rezaei reported Sunday night, workers said they are concerned about increasing crime and violence in the area.
River North, of course, is a busy area in Chicago – home to dozens of restaurants, bars, and convenience stores.
An employee of a 24-hour Subway sandwich shop at 447 N. State St. said the shop closed early on the Friday night shift, after two men were attacked in the middle of the street.
“People got robbed,” said Subway employee Guillermo Salgudo. “People got beat up.”
Salgudo was working at the Subway that night and saw a man getting robbed.
“The other guy tried to defend him, and then he got beat up,” Salgudo said.
He said the crime has gotten really bad in the area over the past month and a half.
“Right now, we’ve got drug dealers, a lot of prostitution, a lot of homeless – it’s really bad right here,” Salgudo said.
On State Street just north of the Chicago River, there are a lot of frustrations from many shop owners. The owner of a 7-Eleven said one of her managers recently quit from having nightmares from the crime in the area.
She also said just moments after Rezaei and her crew came to interview on Sunday, one of the employees at the 7-Eleven was shoved by someone who was shoplifting.
While she could not speak on camera, the owner of the 7-Eleven showed us surveillance video of how busy it can get outside the store. She said on many nights – including this weekend – her employees lock themselves inside the store when crowds outside get too big.
Neighboring employees like Salgudo said they want to feel safer at work – and want to see more police officers patrolling the area.
“We can’t defend ourselves right here,” he said. “They’re the only ones that can help us.”
As of late Sunday, there had been no arrests in the early Saturday morning robbery.
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