16 years for Chicago man who carjacked a driver so he could get to court for a stolen car case



A Chicago man who allegedly carjacked a driver because he needed to get to court for a pending stolen motor vehicle case has been sentenced to a combined 16 years in prison. But he’ll be released after serving less than seven years.

Edward Fleming, 22, was charged with possessing a stolen motor vehicle in January 2020 after police said he was driving a stolen Ford Fusion with a ski mask on his head and a “Friday the 13th”-style “Jason” mask in the back seat. He was released on his own recognizance.

The following month, prosecutors said, Fleming and two juveniles lured a Joliet man into a carjacking trap so Fleming could get to his court appearance within the hour.
The hijacking victim, 22, told police he drove to West Pullman around 8 a.m. to meet with a woman he found via a dating app. When he arrived, a 14-year-old girl directed him to another location, where Fleming allegedly pointed a gun at him and racked its slide. A 17-year-old male punched the victim in the face, and the entire group took the man’s phone, keys, and car.

Fleming was due in court at 9 a.m. that morning. But he didn’t make it.

That’s because, at 8:44 a.m., Chicago police spotted him as he parked the hijacked Nissan Altima less than a block from the 111th Street courthouse, a complex that also houses the Chicago Police Department’s Calumet (5th) District police station and Area South police headquarters.

Officers said they could see a handgun lying in the open inside the car, a weapon that was stolen in south suburban Lynwood, according to a police report.

Fleming has now pleaded guilty to armed robbery without a weapon, which was reduced from armed robbery with a firearm in the hijacking case. Prosecutors dropped six other felonies, and he received a 14-year sentence from Judge Thomas Hennelly. By pleading guilty to armed robbery without a weapon instead of armed robbery with a firearm, Fleming avoided a 15-year sentencing enhancement.
https://cwbchicago.com/2023/01/16-ye...-car-case.html