Chicago police have released surveillance photos of a man and a woman wanted for beating and robbing a man on a Red Line train near the 95th Street station early Sunday.
The two walked up to the man as he was riding the train at 15 W. 95th St. around 2:40 a.m., according to a police alert. They rifled through his pockets and hit him in the head with a bottle.
The man is described as Black, 25 to 30 years old, 5-foot-3 to 5-foot-9 and dressed in a multi-colored shirt and black pants with a gray stripe on the legs.
The woman is described as Black, 25 to 30 years old, 5-foot-3 to 5-foot-9 and dressed in a white jacket with a multi-colored hood and ripped black jeans.
Eric Lewis, 63, a community activist, walked into the 95th Street Red Line station about 5 a.m. Monday saddened to hear that another violent robbery had occurred on a CTA train.
The now-retired U.S. Marine veteran had been patrolling the Red Line station earlier this year but had stopped when CTA announced it was planning to increase its security presence.
“We are starting to patrol the entire Red Line train because it is getting out of hand,” Lewis said. “This is no Guardian Angels stuff, this isn’t fake, we are doing serious business here to try our best to keep people safe.”
Lewis is the leader of what he calls “The Untouchables,” about half a dozen seniors who have again started patrolling the Red Line every day from 5 to 9 a.m. They do so by riding a train from the 95th Street station on the South Side to the Howard station on the North Side.
The youngest person in the group is 62 and the oldest is 68.
He hopes their presence can act as a deterrent for would-be robberies happening on trains. Still, their loved ones often worry about them getting hurt.
“You know our wives, kids or grandkids tell us not to do it and worry about something happening to us, but we are already prepared for what may come,” Lewis said. “We’re not scared, we don’t want to get hurt, but we do want to defend passengers no matter what.”
Lewis regrets not being there at the time of Sunday’s robbery but also said most of the violence happening on the trains can happen in the early morning hours — before The Untouchables even enter the turnstiles.
“There should be a coordinated effort to make sure there is security or someone on every train that leaves 95th Street station to make sure someone from CTA or CPD are present and available to help someone in need,” Lewis said. “Even if it’s just for the overnight schedule since that is when most of the crime is happening.”
A spokesperson for CTA said Chicago police already patrol stations, trains and buses along with unarmed security guards. The spokesperson didn’t say if the agency approved of the actions of civilians like Lewis.
“On an average weekday, there are 2,300 train trips and nearly 18,000 bus trips. While there is broad, strategic coverage by CPD officers and security guards, it is impossible to have officers on every train and bus, and at every facility all hours of the day,” the spokesperson said.
