Chaos on Chicago Street as $300,000 Spills from Armored Truck and Dozens Flee with Cash

Brinks security vehicle

Between 50 and 100 individuals made off with approximately $300,000 in cash after three money bags fell from an armored Brinks truck in the Chicago area on Tuesday, April 22. The incident occurred around 5:07 p.m. local time as the vehicle traveled southbound on the 300 block of South Austin Boulevard in Oak Park, Illinois.

According to a report from the Oak Park Police Department (OPPD), the Brinks Home Security vehicle's back door "opened by unknown means," resulting in the bags of money spilling onto the roadway. Upon returning to the scene, a Brinks employee observed a large crowd gathering around the scattered cash. Witnesses and the company representative reported that people began grabbing the money and fleeing both on foot and in vehicles.

The total amount taken is estimated at around $300,000. As of Friday, April 25, no arrests had been made in connection with the incident, and police have not released any further updates regarding suspects or recoveries.

Stock image of a bag of money

This is not the first incident involving unsecured cash falling from armored trucks in recent years. In November 2021, a similar episode occurred on Interstate 5 near San Diego, California, when an armored truck’s door opened, sending bags of cash flying across the highway. Drivers abandoned their vehicles to gather the loose bills, which were later identified as mostly $1 and $20 denominations. Authorities at the time urged the public to return the money voluntarily.

An earlier case in May 2018 saw another Brinks truck lose a “substantial amount” of cash on an expressway in Indiana after its rear door opened unexpectedly. In all these cases, law enforcement has reiterated that taking money from such scenes constitutes theft and is subject to criminal charges.

In the recent Oak Park incident, investigators are working to identify individuals involved in the cash grab through surveillance footage and eyewitness accounts. Law enforcement officials continue to ask anyone with information or who picked up money from the scene to come forward.

In 2019, $175,000 that fell out of the back of an armored truck. Some of the people returned the money