Chicago man guilty of sexually assaulting woman at gunpoint in Oak Brook hotel

A Chicago man was found guilty Thursday of sexually assaulting at gunpoint a female employee of an Oak Brook hotel in the fall of 2019.

Julius Ramsey, 38, of the 4000 block of West Wilcox Street, also was found guility of three counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault with a firearm, one count of aggravated kidnapping with a firearm and one count of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, according to a DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office news release.

The jury returned their verdict after approximately two-and-one-half hours of deliberations following a three-day trial.

On Sept. 9, 2019, at approximately 11:48 a.m., Oak Brook police were called to the Hyatt House located on 22nd Street for a sexual assault that had occurred in a vacant room. Through the course of their investigation, police learned that at approximately 11:20 a.m., Ramsey forced the woman at gunpoint into a vacant room at the hotel where he sexually assaulted her on several occasions, put the gun to her head and threatened to kill her, the release stated.

At some point in time, the victim was able to escape the room and reported the assault. The investigation also yielded a firearm in a hotel room rented by Ramsey that matched the description provided by the victim as the gun Ramsey pointed at her head. Additionally, a DNA sample from Ramsey was later confirmed to be a match with DNA evidence collected.

On Sept. 12, 2019, Ramsey voluntarily came to the Oak Brook Police Department and was interviewed. Following the interview, he was taken into custody. He was charged the following day. He appeared in bond court where bond was denied. He has been held in custody since that time at the DuPage County Jail.

“I’m sure this experience has been very traumatic for the victim, and I commend her for having the courage to face her attacker in open court,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement. “The evidence in this case was overwhelming and I would like to thank the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office Crime Lab for their extended efforts in providing us the DNA evidence necessary in such a timely manner that we were able to charge Mr. Ramsey just days after the assault.”

Ramsey’s next court appearance is scheduled for July 9 for return of the pre-sentence report. Because the crime was committed with a firearm, sentence guidelines dictate that Ramsey will face a minimum penalty of 84 years in prison.