Second man charged in Downers Grove attempted auto theft sentenced to 12 years

The second of two adults charged with attempting to steal a vehicle from the garage of a Downers Grove residence was sentenced Monday to 16 years in prison.

Carlos Hendricks, 22, of Chicago, plead guilty to one count of attempt vehicular hijacking, according to a DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office news release.

Hendricks’ co-defendant, Lamourice Shepherd, 22, also of Chicago, was sentenced April 30 to 12 years in prison following his plea of guilty to the same charge.

Last summer, two juveniles also involved each entered a plea of guilty to their roles in the incident and received sentences of an indeterminate period of time not to exceed their 21st birthday in the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, the release stated.

On Feb. 6, 2020, at approximately 4:15 a.m., Downers Grove police responded to of call of shots fired in the 7400 block of Webster Street.

An investigation alleges that an occupant of the residence was warming up a car when they observed through the front window a car stopped in front of the house with its headlights off. Two occupants of the vehicle, which was reported stolen out of Chicago, allegedly exited the vehicle and began walking up the driveway of the victim’s house toward the car that was warming up, the release stated.

Two residents of the house confronted the two men. The men then returned to their vehicle and one of the juveniles who was an occupant of the vehicle pointed a gun at a female resident of the house and fired one shot in her direction. The vehicle then fled the scene.

A short time later,Darien police saw the vehicle allegedly involved in the matter and attempted to stop it at 75th Street and Cass Avenue. The vehicle allegedly refused to stop and the Darien police continued pursuit. The car entered northbound Interstate 55 at which time the Illinois State Police continued pursuit. The vehicle exited the expressway and crashed at Martin Luther King Drive in Chicago. The occupants of the vehicle, Shepherd, Hendricks and the two juveniles were taken into custody at this time. Police also recovered two handguns, the release stated.

“As of this morning, all those involved in the violent attempt to steal a Downers Grove resident’s car have been brought to justice,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in the release. “While violent crimes such as this can leave a community feeling vulnerable, knowing that those responsible will pay for their crimes can go a long way in restoring a community’s sense of security.”

Hendricks will be required to serve 50% of his sentence before being eligible for parole.