A 19-year-old man accused of
shooting a woman
during a violent robbery in Lakeview last weekend was already on pretrial release for a pending felony stolen vehicle case — and he’s suspected in several other armed robberies across Chicago, officials said Wednesday.
Michael Jenkins was ordered held without release by Judge Rivanda Doss Beal, who noted Jenkins had five juvenile convictions for violent crimes. At the time of the shooting, he was already facing a felony charge for possessing a stolen car, and, according to prosecutors, committed several new felonies while awaiting trial.
Woman shot during robbery near Wellington and Broadway
Just after midnight on July 13, two 24-year-old women were walking toward one of their homes in the 400 block of West Wellington when three men, all armed, approached quickly, prosecutors said.
As the women screamed, the robbers struck one of them repeatedly and ordered the other to hand over her backpack and change the passcode on her phone. As she complied, one of the attackers shot the other woman in the stomach, according to a detention petition.
The trio fled in a Ford Edge with the women’s belongings as the women continued to scream. Only when one of them collapsed did the other realize she’d been shot. A passing Uber driver ran over to help and revealed he had taken a picture of the getaway car, including its license plate, prosecutors said.
The wounded woman was rushed to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in critical condition. The bullet had severed an artery and required immediate surgery, according to the filing.
While at the hospital, the surviving victim began receiving bank alerts: someone was using her stolen credit cards at gas stations. Soon after, there was an attempted online purchase of $1,000 in gym shoes, the petition says.
Stolen SUV tied to crime spree
Prosecutors allege Jenkins stole the Ford Edge just hours earlier, around 5:20 p.m. on July 12 in the 600 block of West Wellington after a driver left it running with the doors unlocked. CTA Red Line video showed him taking a train from 35th Street to Belmont, where he exited about an hour before the auto theft. Investigators eventually found it abandoned near his home.
Cops arrested Jenkins after a foot chase on Monday. Prosecutors say he threw a loaded gun over a fence before being captured.
‘_
bigmike1500
_’ and a trail of crimes
Investigators used forensic tools to extract location data from the Ford Edge’s entertainment system. That data placed the SUV on streets throughout East Lakeview just before and during the Wellington robbery, including at the exact address at the time of the shooting, according to the petition.
The filing states that the location trail also helped police match video surveillance at gas stations and drive-thrus where the suspects used the victims’ cards, including a McDonald’s where Jenkins was seen making a purchase.
Police also tied Jenkins to an earlier violent robbery on June 9. That evening, surveillance video showed Jenkins walking back and forth along the sidewalk in the 3100 block of North Broadway, near a car left running by a delivery driver who went inside to pick up food. At 7:33 p.m., Jenkins got in and drove off, prosecutors allege.
That same Honda CR-V was used in
four armed robberies later that night
, including one at 11:51 p.m. in the 700 block of West Roscoe, according to the petition.
In that case, a 21-year-old woman was returning home from 7-Eleven when she was attacked at her front door by two masked men. One held a gun to her neck. The other covered her mouth and said, “Shut up or I’ll shoot you.”
They stole her phone, forced her to change its passcode to “000000,” and took her wallet, credit cards, and a package of nicotine pouches. The men fled in the Honda CR-V, which was seen entering the Boystown bar strip moments later, according to the filing.
The next day, police recovered the car on the West Side — with the stolen, unopened Zyn package still inside, the petition says.
That victim later told police that her contacts received texts from her phone: “Can you Apple Pay me 25 for an Uber?”
Days later, while logging into Instagram for the first time on her new phone, she was prompted to select an account. Among them was one she did not recognize: “_
bigmike1500
_.” It was accompanied by a profile photo of the man who had covered her mouth during the robbery — Jenkins, according to prosecutors.
Jenkins is charged with attempted first-degree murder, three counts of armed robbery, two counts of possessing stolen motor vehicles, aggravated possession of a weapon, and identity theft.
He is the eighth person charged with shooting, killing, or trying to kill someone in Chicago this year while on felony pretrial release.
The “not horrible” series
This report continues our coverage of individuals accused of killing, shooting, or trying to kill or shoot others on pretrial release for a felony allegation. CWBChicago began our series of reports in November 2019 after Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans
publicly stated
, “We haven’t had any horrible incidents occur” under the court’s bond reform initiative.
The actual number of murders and shootings committed by people awaiting trial for felony allegations is undoubtedly much higher than the numbers seen here. Since 2017, CPD has brought charges in
less than 5% of non-fatal shootings and 33% of murders
, according to the city’s data. You can see all of the “not horrible” stories
here
.
