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Justin Bieber in Chicago? Fans Swarm Peninsula Hotel for a Glimpse

By DNAinfo Staff on July 8, 2013 8:05pm  | Updated on July 8, 2013 9:02pm

 Fans of Justin Bieber stood outside of River North's The Peninsula Chicago hotel on word that the pop sensation was staying there.
Justin Bieber Outside of Peninsula Hotel
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RIVER NORTH — Do you "Belieb" that Justin Bieber is in Chicago?

A swarm of Justin Bieber fans stood outside of The Peninsula Chicago hotel on reports that the pop star is spending the night there.

Bieber tweeted early Monday morning that he was "off to chi town." The message was retweeted nearly 50,000 times by 8 p.m.

"We were actually coming to eat dinner when I heard screaming," said Mikalya Martens, a 14-year-old from British Columbia in town to see "The Biebs" play the United Center Tuesday. "I heard people screaming and I knew he must be staying there."

John Fritchey, a member of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, tweeted a photo of the scene.

"First sign that Justin Bieber is staying at @ThePeninsulaChi? Maybe the hundreds of screaming teenage girls outside," the politician wrote.

An employee at The Peninsula wouldn't confirm if Bieber was staying there or why there was a horde of screaming fans, mostly girls with a few men, outside.

Neither could police at the scene. As of 8:30 p.m., there were at least a dozen officers posted outside of the hotel to make sure the crowd, which screamed at every turn of the hotel's revolving door, wouldn't get out of control.

One officer said he's been at the scene since 2 p.m.

But the pop star did confirm one thing Monday afternoon via Twitter: "i love Chicago".

That message was retweeted more than 40,000 times as of 8 p.m.