Person of interest in custody for Rogers Park sexual assault!

Person of interest in custody for Rogers Park sexual assault!!!

A man is in custody after being accused of sexually assaulting a woman in a gangway in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood.

Police are also calling him a person of interest in several other recent cases on the city’s Far North Side.

Neighbors are praising officers for making an arrest so quickly and feeling a sense of relief that someone is in custody.

Police said the victim was just walking in the gangway of an apartment building around 11 p.m. Thursday night near Lunt and Wolcott Avenues when she was sexually assaulted.

“It was jolting to see that it was right outside my own building,” said neighbor Suzanne Meyering.

Detectives went door to door talking to neighbors less than 24 hours after the 21-year-old woman told them she was assaulted at knifepoint.

“I’ve lived here in this building for 20 years and as far as I know we’ve never had anything like this happened before and I have been more cautious,” Meyering said.

Police said a man believed to be 19-years-old pulled out a knife on the victim and sexually assaulted her then took off. The victim was able to alert officers, who then took her to the hospital.

“You normally feel safe until it gets dark and that’s because people from the wrong neighborhood come into our quiet neighborhood,” said neighbor Caroline Dawnson.

A short time later, police caught the man. Officers could be seen marking a bicycle as evidence in the alley.

The MO in Rogers Park is similar to other recent cases reported in West Ridge. Police issued a community alert on Monday warning residents about a series of armed burglaries, robberies, and sexual assaults involving a man armed with a knife and potentially fleeing on a bicycle.

The following incidents were recorded:

• 6200 block of N. Bell on Dec. 26, 2024 at 2:50 a.m.
• 2300 block of W. Arthur on Jan. 25, 2025 at 11:29 p.m.
• 6200 block of N. Artesian on March 25, 2025 at 9:03 p.m.
• 6200 block of N. Oakley Ave on March 25, 2025 at 9:20 p.m.
• 6100 block of N. Campbell Ave on April 25, 2025 at 8:55 p.m.

In three incidents police said the victims, all women were robbed and sexually assaulted as they were making their way into their homes on Bell, Oakley, and Campbell.

“It’s just another reminder to be very alert,” said one neighbor. “I’m delighted that the police caught the alleged perpetrator so quickly. I appreciate the police do a follow up on this.”

A homeowner told NBC Chicago detectives were able to find footage from his surveillance cameras of the person of interest walking along Campbell Avenue.

Police said charges are pending in the Rogers Park case. The victim was in good condition at the hospital at last check.