Armed robbers hit Gurnee store, Waukegan hotel
Two more businesses in Gurnee and Waukegan were robbed Wednesday night, authorities said.
In the first stickup, a gunman held up the Family Dollar store, 2521 W. Grand Ave., Gurnee. In the second, a gunman robbed the Holiday Inn Express, 611 Lakehurst Road, Waukegan.
The first heist occurred about 7:50 p.m. at the Gurnee store. A black man wearing a black ski mask walked into the store, displayed a semi-automatic handgun and demanded money. He ordered employees to put the money into a black backpack he brought along, police said.
The robber told the workers and a customer that an accomplice was watching from outside and ordered them to lie on the floor for five minutes.
The thief then walked out of the store and headed south through the parking lot.
Police and police dogs searched the area but could not find the robber.
He was described as being 5 feet 9 inches to 6 feet tall. In addition to the mask he was wearing a dark hooded jacket with a gold zipper, white and black gloves and dark athletic shoes that had a light-colored emblem on the sides.
The second robbery occurred about midnight at the Waukegan hotel.
The thief approached a counter, displayed a handgun, gave a clerk a bag and demanded money, police said.
After collecting the cash, the bandit fled.
The thief was described as a black man wearing a knit cap, a short sleeve shirt over a long sleeve shirt, jeans and white gym shoes.
In both robberies, the thieves fled with undisclosed amounts of cash. No one was hurt in either stickup.
The Holiday Inn also was robbed Feb. 10 by a man armed with a knife.
Several other Waukegan and Gurnee hotels have been robbed in recent weeks. They include the Country Inn & Suites in Gurnee, the Midlane Golf Resort in Waukegan and the LaQuinta Inn in Gurnee.
The descriptions of the suspect in those cases were similar, so police are investigating whether the other robberies were related. The robber was white and armed with a knife.
Anyone with information about the most recent Waukegan stickup can call Waukegan police at (847) 599-2608.
Anyone with information about the Gurnee store heist can call police at (847) 599-7000 or Lake County Crime Stoppers at (847) 662-2222.