Teen sucker-punched, robbed of cell phone charger in Block 37 mall near Red Line stop
A Chicago teen said she was punched in the face and robbed of her phone charger while heading to a CTA Red Line stop downtown earlier this week.
Ariana Harland, 17, insisted she did not know her attacker, nor did she do anything to provoke the random attack. She's thankful she wasn't bruised, despite being sucker punched in the face.
Just before 10 p.m. on Wednesday night, Harland decided to charge her cell phone inside the Block 37 mall. She was alone in a breezeway between the mall and the Lake stop on the Red Line when a person wearing a wig approached.
"I was just charging my phone. It was people there, and a homeless transgender woman came," she said.
Harland said the person quickly threw their bags on top of her phone.
"I'm like, 'What are you doing?' So, I take my charger," she said.
As she grabbed her phone and charger from the outlet, the person followed her.
"They're on my tail, and as soon as I turn around, I have my phone and charger's connected to it. They snatch it. My block piece went flying somewhere, the charger whipped me," she said.
The biggest shock came when the person sucker-punched her in the face.
"I had on my glasses. I think that maybe blocked the force, but it was really hard. I was shaking," Harland said.
The attacker took off running and hopped on the Red Line.
This attack comes after CTA reported crime on the Red Line was down 47% in June 2026 compared to June 2025, serious crime was down 69%, and violent crime dropped 76%. Across the entire transit system, CTA said violent crime dropped 58% from this June compared to June 2025.
Harland's attack is considered a battery, but she said she's surprised her attacker hasn't been caught.
"They could not identify the person, which is insane to me. There's cameras all throughout the Red Line station. So why is it a problem to find this person?" she said.
Harland said she had stopped to charge her phone before riding the Red Line so she could be safe on the train.
Police were reviewing surveillance video from the attack. No one was in custody Friday night.
