Bond denied for one of two men accused of robbing elderly woman at Villa Park Walmart

Bond was denied Friday for one of two Cook County men accused of robbing an elderly woman at gunpoint in a Villa Park Walmart parking lot and then leading police on a high-speed chase.

Jarquez Jones, 18, of the 1000 block of South 4th Street, Maywood, appeared at a bond hearing where Judge Brian Telander granted the state’s motion to deny bond. The bond hearing for Jones’ alleged accomplice, Sincere Harrington, 19, of the 900 block of S. Kedzie Avenue, Chicago, is scheduled for Monday.

Both men have been charged with one count of armed robbery with a firearm and one count of aggravated fleeing and eluding, according to a DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office news release. Herrington is currently out on bond/probation on unlawful use of a weapon charges out of Cook County.

On Dec. 5, at approximately 12:48 p.m., Villa Park police responded to a call of a person in a car with a gun near Route 83 and Riverside Drive. When police arrived, they saw the suspected vehicle drive over the grass and exit the Walmart parking lot southbound on Route 83. Police initiated pursuit.

Following the pursuit, which allegedly reached speeds of approximately 90 mph on Interstate 290 and required the assistance of a Chicago Police Department helicopter, Herrington and Jones abandoned the vehicle and were taken into custody in Chicago. Jones was found in a garbage bin and Herrington was taken into custody following a brief foot pursuit, the report said.

When processing the scene, police found two guns, a .45 caliber Glock 30 and a 9 mm Glock 17, approximately 100 yards from where the defendants’ vehicle came to rest. The Glock 17 was altered to allow it to fire as a fully automatic weapon, according to the release.

The defendants allegedly drove up to an elderly woman in the Walmart parking lot as she was loading her car with groceries. The driver of the vehicle allegedly pointed a gun at the woman and stole her purse, the release stated.

“It is alleged that in the middle of the afternoon in a crowded parking lot these defendants robbed an elderly woman at gunpoint,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in the release. “We are now in the heart of the holiday shopping season and the quick apprehension of the defendants in this case highlights DuPage County’s commitment to our businesses and their patrons that we will most certainly not tolerate this type of violent behavior. We will use every tool and resource available to us, including helicopters, if necessary, to protect our citizens and bring the accused to justice.”

“Let this case be a shining example that law enforcement will do all we can to bring alleged offenders of violent crimes to justice” Villa Park Chief of Police Michael Rivas said. “The facts of this case are despicable and horrifying with an elderly woman allegedly held at gunpoint for her personal property. We are professional and objective, but we can’t help to have the utmost empathy for the victim who could anyone’s elderly mother or grandmother.”

Jones’ next court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 21 for arraignment.