Police: Algonquin attack was an isolated incident
Algonquin police say that - contrary to rumors on Facebook - an attack on a woman Friday night was an isolated incident and not part of a series of attacks against women.
The woman told police she was attacked by three unknown people between 7 and 7:30 p.m. Friday in the parking lot of the Algonquin Commons shopping center at 1900 S. Randall Road, said John A. Bucci, deputy chief of operations for the Algonquin Police Department.
The woman, who is about 30 years old and from Crystal Lake, had just parked her vehicle and had started walking toward a store when she was attacked from behind by two men and a woman who repeatedly hit her in the face, stomach and back, Bucci said.
"It was punches or kicks," he said. "She didn't know. She was kind of covering up."
The woman drove herself to a hospital, from where police got a call at about 9:30 p.m., Bucci said. She was treated for superficial injuries, he said.
Police don't know if Friday's attack was random or targeted, Bucci said.
"There was some Facebook post saying this was the third one where women are being targeted," he said. "There has not been a rash of these incidents going on or occurring in Algonquin Commons. Or in Algonquin."
The woman told police her attackers, who were wearing black clothing, didn't use or display weapons. The attackers did not take any of her belongings, but they may have entered her vehicle to search for something, Bucci said.
"She said she thought she heard a car open and close," he said.
Algonquin police said they investigated one other crime against a woman in the Algonquin Commons parking lot this year, Bucci said. That was in March, when a Woodstock man, later charged with armed robbery, threatened a woman with a screwdriver and took her purse.
Anyone who witnessed Friday's attack is encouraged to contact the police department's investigations division at (847) 658-4531.
People should call 911 immediately if they are victims of crime so police can investigate promptly, Bucci added.