robbery

Tourist Stabbed During Robbery Near Oak Street Beach

A couple visiting Chicago for the first time were victims of an armed robbery near Oak Street Beach Saturday night that ended with one of them being stabbed.

Neil McCarthy, 27, and his girlfriend, Carisa Lerner, were walking back to their hotel in the 1100 block of North Lake Shore Drive around 11:45 p.m. when they were cornered by a group of men. A struggled ensued, and McCarthy's wallet and passport were taken, he said.

"We went for pizza and then we went for a walk, thinking let's walk off some of the calories we just ate. Let's go for a walk. It ended up being a complete nightmare," Lerner said.

When the robbers went through Lerner's pockets and "roughed her up," McCarthy tried to pull them off. That's when one of them pulled out a knife, put him in a headlock and stabbed him in the back of his shoulder.

McCarthy fought back and got the knife away, but the robbers took off.

Once they called police, McCarthy, who is a member of the British Royal Air Force, helped capture one of the robbers using the "Find My iPhone" app. Charges were pending against the 18-year-old suspect Sunday.

McCarthy was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where his condition stabilized. The woman was not injured.

The couple plans to leave Chicago on Monday, but they said the incident did not scare them away forever. They decided to tell their story, however, to warn other tourists visiting Chicago to be more careful.

Copyright CHIST - SunTimes
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