LOGAN SQUARE — Last month, when Stacy Harris and her husband were on vacation, someone broke into their garage and rifled through their Chevy.
The same night, two other garages in their area — near Logan Boulevard and Sacramento Avenue — were broken into, Harris said.
Logan Square has been hit with a spate of garage burglaries in recent weeks, police said in a community alert issued Sunday. While some may dismiss the break-ins as trivial, neighbors are worried the crimes could lead to more intrusive and violent crimes.
About a week after someone broke into the Harris’ garage, the family was hit with another break-in — this time, a home invasion.
Harris, who has lived in the neighborhood for 40 years, said she’s worried the two crimes are connected. Police couldn’t confirm any connection, saying the investigation into the home invasion is ongoing.
At least four garage burglaries have been reported in a small pocket of Logan Square since Oct. 10, police said in the alert. Those numbers could be higher, as some don’t report such crimes to police.
In each of the incidents, someone broke into a garage, stole belongings and ran off, police said.
The reported burglaries happened:
- 10 a.m. Oct. 10 in the 2800 block of North Richmond Street.
- 2:25 a.m. Oct. 22 in the 2900 block of North Albany Avenue.
- 11 p.m. Oct. 27-7 a.m. Oct. 28 in the 2800 block of North Sacramento Avenue.
- 7 a.m. Oct. 28 in the 2800 block of North Whipple Street.
The Harris family came away unscathed from their garage burglary. The car’s trunk and doors were left open, but nothing of value was stolen or damaged, she said.
But Harris said the home invasion was traumatic.
Someone broke in through a second-floor window at 3 a.m. while Harris’ daughter and son-in-law were sleeping, Harris said. Police confirmed the incident happened Oct. 16 in the 2900 block of West Logan Boulevard.
“They were petrified. They called us just hysterical,” Harris said.
Like the garage burglary, the intruder didn’t make off with anything of value, only stealing two bottles of alcohol, Harris said.
Since the break-ins, Harris said she feels unsafe and sets the alarm even when she’s home.
“We all have to be on alert,” she said. “I think we have to try and keep it more front and center in our minds, realizing that something has changed. Why? I don’t know, but there is a change. Will it last? I hope not.”
As of Oct. 23, the 14th Police District, which covers most of Logan Square, had seen about 100 garage burglaries this year, according to a Block Club analysis of police data. That puts the district on pace to match levels seen in 2020 and 2019. But those numbers are lower than previous years, data shows.
Anyone with any information about the reported garage burglaries is encouraged to call detectives at 312-746-7394.
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