Overview

• Chicago police say they took Derek Rucker, 37, into custody around 11:08 a.m. Thursday near East Grand Avenue after a 44-year-old woman was punched in the 500 block of North State Street.
• Rucker now faces six felony charges that include three counts of aggravated battery to a transit employee or passenger, two counts of aggravated battery in a public place, and one count of aggravated battery to a peace officer.
• Investigators linked him to alleged attacks on Sept. 21 near Belmont, Sept. 30 near Loyola, Sept. 30 against an on-duty Evanston officer, and Oct. 8 near North Broadway, in addition to the Oct. 10 River North incident.
• Police and prosecutors said he was on pretrial release in the Loyola case, which has been elevated from misdemeanors to a felony before Friday’s court appearance.
• Court officials circulated a staff warning with his mugshot last week as social media posts and videos drew wider attention to the alleged series of assaults.