Wildebeast muggings being probed

Chicago police this morning were looking into at least three separate downtown muggings carried out by separate groups of attackers, as the city gears up for its busy summer festival season.

The attacks occurred among hundreds of tourists and music lovers who emptied out of Grant Park for the Chicago Blues Festival, which city officials tout as the largest free blues festival in the world.

One incident involved up to 10 attackers -- seven youths and three adults -- who beat and robbed a man in the 500 block of North State Street at about 9:50 p.m., police said.

The victim, a male tourist in his 40s, was being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital with a broken jaw, police said.

At about 10:20 p.m., a couple was accosted by a group at the Lake/State Red Line station in the 100 block of North State Street, near the Chicago Theatre, police said.

In that attack, the couple were robbed and the man beaten by an unknown number of attackers, who fled. The male victim was also taken to Northwestern with non-serious injuries.

Police also received a report of a third attack near the Gold Coast, but investigators hadn't determined the exact location or time.

The attacks occurred as city officials were preparing downtown for the upcoming festival season, including Lollapalooza, The Air and Water Show and the Taste of Chicago, which are expected to bring thousands to the city and generate millions of dollars in revenue.

Authorities are already dealing with a higher number of homicides and shootings than the city had at the same time last year.