Wicker Park Craft Pizza robbery caught on video

Thursday, November 13, 2014
Wicker Park Craft Pizza robbery caught on video
The owners of a Chicago pizza shop are looking for help after being robbed by a gang of youngsters with a baby stroller.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The owners of a Chicago pizza shop are looking for help after being robbed by a gang of youngsters with a baby stroller. The robbery was all caught on surveillance tape.

Five young people, one baby in a stroller, and an unusual pizza order at Craft Pizza in the 1200-block of North Damen in the Wicker Park neighborhood.

"I'm like, one slice for this group? Okay that's weird. That's fine though," said Aaron Johnson, a kitchen worker at Craft Pizza.

But when the workers turn their back, a young women takes a to-go menu, swipes $10 bucks from the tip jar, and hides the money in the baby stroller.

"Here's a young mother with her young cousins or friends, or whatever, and they are out stealing and robbing people. At that age, wow, it's unbelievable," said Scott Toth, Craft Pizza owner.

Next, the phone rings.

"She said, give me the biggest pizza you got, it was really fishy," Toth said.

The owners think the call was a distraction, because at the same time, just outside the kitchen window, a young man was scaling the fence and opened the gate. He tried a few times to steal a worker's bag.

"I'm glad he didn't take my bag, whew, because that's expensive, too," said Johnson.

"He's not a millionaire. He works for his money," said Toth.

He leaves the bag, but takes the worker's $700 bike. To top it off, Aaron Johnson has had six bikes stolen since he moved to Chicago five years ago!

"Honestly, I don't even want to get another bike because it's going to get stolen again," Johnson said.

In releasing the video, the owners hope the young thieves are caught.

"Something should be done. You know, they should be lectured and somewhat rehabilitated that this is wrong behavior and this is not the way to start your life," Toth said.