Magnificent Mile-area stores are targets of smash-and-grab thieves

Burglars crashed a Jeep into a store and got away with merchandise in one of two smash-and-grab burglaries on or near the Magnificent Mile on Tuesday.

Just before 5:30 a.m., a group of burglars drove the Jeep into the store before driving off in two waiting vehicles with merchandise they took from inside, police said. The Jeep was abandoned at the scene, and the burglars were seen heading southbound.

Hours earlier, three people broke into a business in the 700 block of North Michigan Avenue around 2:45 a.m., police said. After taking merchandise, the burglars drove off in a waiting vehicle, heading southbound.

No one was in custody Tuesday evening in either burglary, and detectives continue to investigate, police said.