1 robbery suspect dead, 1 from Waukegan injured in Ike crash

An armed robbery suspect was killed and two others - one from Waukegan - were injured on the Eisenhower Expressway late Tuesday after victims of a South Side robbery chased the suspects onto the highway where they crashed, police said.

The car the suspects used to get away from the robbery at a Citgo gas station at 63rd Street and Wentworth Avenue rolled over on Interstate 290 near California Boulevard at about 11:25 p.m., Illinois State Police officials said.

The 27-year-old Waukegan man was a passenger in the back seat, but remains in Stroger Hospital in Chicago in critical condition, state police officials said. The 29-year-old Chicago driver also is listed in critical condition at Mt. Sinai Hospital, officials added.

Jeffrey Banks, 25, of Chicago was pronounced dead at the scene by the Cook County Medical Examiners office. Banks was in the front passenger seat when the dark grey Chevrolet Cobalt crashed, officials said.

Police are not releasing the names of the two in the hospital until formal charges are filed, Illinois State Police officials said.

According to Chicago police, the men robbed two patrons of the gas station at about 10:45 p.m. and fled the scene in the Cobalt. However, the victims followed the three suspects, onto the expressway, and dialed 911 while in pursuit.

But, before state troopers could get involved in the pursuit, the speeding Cobalt tried to get away by cutting across three lanes of the highway and onto the California Street exit, Illinois State Police officials said.

The car hit an embankment, flipped, and landed on its roof in the exit lane, state police officials said.

State police officials continue to investigate the crash.