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Purse Snatcher Caught Thanks To Good Samaritans, Prosecutors Say

By  Alisa Hauser and Erica Demarest | July 26, 2017 9:27am | Updated on July 26, 2017 6:34pm

 Rashad Whitlock, 21, is accused of pushing a woman to the ground and stealing her purse Tuesday night.
Rashad Whitlock, 21, is accused of pushing a woman to the ground and stealing her purse Tuesday night.
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Chicago Police Department/Google Maps

WEST TOWN — A parolee who snatched a woman's purse in West Town Tuesday was arrested within minutes of the attack thanks to good Samaritans and Chicago police, prosecutors said.

The 29-year-old victim was carrying several items, including a purse, as she walked in the 700 block of North Bishop Street about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Assistant State's Attorney Lorraine Scaduto said during a bond hearing Wednesday.

Rashad Whitlock, 21, approached the woman and offered help carrying the items, according to prosecutors.

When the woman declined Whitlock's offer and continued to walk, Scaduto said, Whitlock grabbed the victim's ponytail, pushed her to the ground, stole her purse and took off running.

The woman yelled for help, and several good Samaritans began to chase Whitlock — who jumped on garage roofs and scaled fences in an attempt to get away, prosecutors said. He eventually dropped the purse as witnesses called 911.

Police arrived within minutes, court records show, and were able to arrest Whitlock nearby in the 1400 block of West Superior Street. Whitlock initially resisted arrest, standing "with a clenched right fist," police said.

Whitlock, of the 2500 block of East 96th Street, is currently on parole for a 2012 carjacking case. He was sentenced in 2014 to nine years in prison and released on parole in February of this year, state records show.

He now faces charges of robbery, resisting arrest and aggravated assault to a police officer. Cook County Judge James Brown on Wednesday set bail at $150,000.

A West Town resident who heard the victim screaming told DNAinfo Chicago that "cops were here super fast" and that some of her neighbors had tried to stop Whitlock.

"Lots of people yelling. Lots of people came out on the street and cheered when the cops took him away," the witness said, adding that the victim appeared okay and just "shook up" after the robbery.

Another witness, a stay-at-home mom who helped block the alley with her car, said she was honking her horn loudly as more neighbors came outside to find out what was going on.

"We had him cornered and he jumped on the roof of a garage to get away," the resident said. "There were at least 30 people chasing him. If the neighbors had not intervened, this guy would have gotten away."

She added, "Everyone was cheering for the cops, we were yelling and saying 'thank you.' One of the cops said to me, 'We need more neighborhoods like this.'"