Now I know you're going to find this difficult to believe, but the suspects are black.
Woman attacked while riding Blue Line, suspects sought
CHICAGO -- Police are seeking two suspects in the brutal beating of a woman who was riding the CTA Blue Line yesterday morning.
The beating happened around 10 a.m Thursday on a CTA Blue Line train headed west, approaching the Kedzie-Homan stop.
19-year-old DePaul student Jessica Hughes was on her way home to Berwyn from a morning class and says after a large group of people got off the train at the UIC Halstead stop, a man moved to the seat in front of her, turned around and attacked.
“He grabs me, pushes me to the floor and starts beating on my head repeatedly,” Jessica said.
The man wanted Jessica’s phone. It was in her pocket. A woman who was with the attacker jumped in and punched Jessica in the nose, breaking it.
All the while, two male passengers stood by and watched.
“He kept beating on me. I'm yelling help to the other people and no one came “
The suspects did not get Jessica's phone. They ran off the train.
The attackers were captured on surveillance video.
“I'm just hoping everything they need is on that video,” Jessica said. “And they're able to get those people that did this to me.”She described the attacker as an African American man in his mid-20's. She says he had facial hair, was wearing a blue Ralph Lauren polo hat, a grey hoodie and baggy pants that were sagging below his waist.
She says the woman, also African American in her mid-20's was extremely thin, with long black hair.
Chicago police are investigating, but had not interviewed Jessica yet when WGN News spoke with her earlier this afternoon.
CTA released a statement saying:
CTA continues to work closely with CPD as they investigate the matter, which includes reviewing and providing them with any video surveillance footage.
Overall, serious crime is very rare on CTA trains and buses, averaging seven incidents for every 10 million rides in 2015.
CTA has more than 23,000 security cameras across all stations, buses and trains; it's one of the few system-wide networks in the nation and has proved to be an invaluable tool for police investigating crimes committed on or near CTA property. In fact, the cameras are a contributing factor behind the 25 percent decrease in crime reported across CTA properties in 2015 - the fourth straight year that crimes have decreased on the CTA.
Woman attacked while riding Blue Line, suspects sought