A 20-year-old guy who was previously charged with robbing three passengers on CTA trains is now also charged with holding up a tobacco shop in the North Side in a smash-and-grab manner.
In a detention petition, prosecutors claimed that on April 6, Kenyon Guillory and at least six other males broke into Galaxy Smoke Shop, located at 1349 West Morse Avenue. The cashier could see bulges that appeared to be firearms when Guillory and a few of his associates stood in front of her with their hands tucked into their waistbands, according to the prosecution.
One of the robbers is said to have warned, “Do not try anything or else.”
Before escaping onto a Red Line train, the team, dressed primarily in black, masks, and gloves, proceeded behind the counter and removed almost $5,000 worth of smoke, tobacco, and vaping items, according to the petition.
A police officer recognized Guillory from CTA security footage and was able to identify him. According to the petition, police also ran the video through a facial recognition program, which identified Guillory. Guillory allegedly confessed to the heist when he was questioned by police, telling them that he sells stolen smokes on CTA trains.
Judge Maryam Ahmad ordered Guillory to be detained on the new charge even though he was already in custody for the earlier cases.
He is accused of robbing Red Line passengers on April 6, April 7, and April 9 in the other outstanding cases. He was taken into custody by police following the April 9 incident in which two men, ages 25 and 27, reported being robbed on a southbound train and waved down cops at 87th Street at approximately 9:45 p.m. Police were informed by the victims that the perpetrators had just entered a neighboring BP station.
Both victims recognized Guillory and Kevin Stoner, 30, as the thieves inside the station.
Prosecutors claimed during a detention hearing that Stoner searched through one victim’s possessions and took a bottle of tequila, a baseball cap, and a debit card as Guillory held a knife to the victim’s side. Additionally, a knife was used to cut the man’s bag’s strap. Prosecutors claimed that during the same incident, Stoner struck the younger victim in the head with a glass bottle while Guillory stole a bottle of vodka and $30 from his pockets.
