LOGAN SQUARE — Three boys on bikes have been terrorizing adults and throwing rocks at them in Logan Square recently, according to members of EveryBlock who shared their experiences online.
In two incidents over two recent Saturdays, the boys were at the southwest corner of Western and Belden avenues, near Paladar Cuban restaurant, at 2252 N. Western Ave. in Logan Square, according to Kristen Metcalfe.
Metcalfe said she and her husband noticed that the boys "were swerving their bikes at people and screaming in their faces."
After Metcalfe and her husband told them to stop, they challenged the couple to a fight and followed them while throwing rocks and yelling obscenities, Metcalfe said in an EveryBlock post.
The 10- to 12-year-olds were led by a somewhat chubby boy with a buzzcut, according to four other people who said they were harassed by the three preteens.
Alex Kemmler, a 31-year-old Logan Square resident said he was about to cross Milwaukee Avenue at Armitage on April 16 when three boys swerved very close to him and his girlfriend.
"I was like 'hey kids don't do that.' I might have sworn. I expected them to just go away," said Kemmler, who added, "I am way too old to be getting in altercations with 12-year-olds."
But instead of going away, the boys began cursing at Kemmler, he said.
"What did you say to me? I am going treat the f-- out out of you," one of the boys said, according to Kemmler.
After leaving Walgreens, Kemmler said the boys followed him and his girlfriend for at least two blocks down Milwaukee Avenue.
"They were trying to pick a fight," Kemmler said.
As they neared a construction site just south of California Avenue, Kemmler said he was hit with a small rock on his upper back.
"After they threw the rock, they called me a scary a--," Kemmler said.
Kemmler, who was not injured by the rock, said he did not file a police report.
Jose Gonzalez, owner of Paladar, said on Monday that he was not aware of the boys.
"To be honest with you, I have not seen it. Do I see kids riding by? Yes, and they continue [on]. No one stands on the corner. If I did see it, I would definitely do something about it. We have cameras and are very observant of any harassment," Gonzalez said.
Meltcafe did not file a police report on the two altercations, on April 16 and Saturday, but she said she planned to do so after work on Monday.
Officer Nicole Trainor, a Chicago Police Department spokeswoman, said residents should not engage the kids, verbally or physically.
"If residents feel they are being threatened they should call the police. Residents should give their name and phone number, location of the incident, description of the boys, and a summary of what is occurring. Depending on the circumstances, officers could arrest the boys if residents are willing to sign criminal complaints. Under no circumstances would CPD advise residents to take matters into their own hands," Trainor said.
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