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Crime Brief

Andrew Freund transferred to Stateville Correctional Center

The Crystal Lake man convicted in the death of his 5-year-old son AJ Freund has been transported to an Illinois prison to serve his sentence.

Andrew T. Freund Sr. remained Monday at the Illinois Department of Corrections Northern Reception Center, housed at Stateville Correctional Center, according to the IDOC website.

The 62-year-old former lawyer arrived at the Crest Hill prison on Dec. 1. Typically, inmates who are booked and processed at the Northern Reception Center remain there until they are transferred to the prison where they will complete their sentence, according to the IDOC website.

Privileges and movement are limited at the reception center and processing times vary by inmate, according to the website.

Freund pleaded guilty in September to aggravated battery of a child, involuntary manslaughter and concealment of a homicidal death in connection with AJ’s April 2019 death.

McHenry County Judge Robert Wilbrandt sentenced Freund to 30 years in prison, although he could serve as few as 18 years under the state’s sentencing laws. Freund could be released on parole by Jan. 23, 2043, according to the IDOC website.

AJ’s mother, JoAnn D. Cunningham, was sentenced in July to 35 years in prison in connection with the boy’s death. As of Monday 36-year-old Cunningham remained at Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln where she is serving her prison sentence.

Katie Smith

Katie Smith

Katie reported on the crime and courts beat for the Northwest Herald from 2017 through 2021. She began her career with Shaw Media in 2015 at the Daily Chronicle in DeKalb, where she reported on the courts, city council, the local school board, and business.