Hanover Park man gets 30 years for dollar store murder

A Hanover Park man convicted of planning a 2008 dollar store robbery that led to the stabbing death of a clerk was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison.

Jerry Lockhart, 42, was convicted by a DuPage County jury in December of armed robbery and first-degree murder in the death of 56-year-old Vatsala Thakkar.

Thakkar, a mother of three, was stabbed repeatedly on Nov. 20, 2008, after two teenagers robbed her of about $135 at Dollar Plus in Hanover Park.

Lockhart was not present for the robbery, but prosecutors said he instructed the robbers and armed them with knives.

At sentencing, Judge John Kinsella likened Lockhart to the Charles Dickens character Fagin, who steered children into lives of crime in “Oliver Twist.”

“If anything, there’s a greater degree of responsibility,” Kinsella said, noting Lockhart’s age and influence among the others accused, then 15 and 17.

Family members said Thakkar was a medical doctor in India who was unable to practice in the United States due to a language barrier. Before her death, relatives said, she spent months caring for a son who had undergone brain surgery, while holding down a job at the dollar store, on the 5600 block of Arlington East Drive, for the income.

“My wife did everything possible to ensure everyone in our family was cared for,” Thakkar’s husband, Vishnu Thakkar, wrote in a victim impact statement. “There is a big empty space in our family now that will never be filled again.”

Appearing to fight back tears, Lockhart apologized to the Thakkar family for their loss, but he denied any involvement in the robbery. He said he visited the dollar store often, and Thakkar was always friendly with his 9-year-old daughter.

“I did not commit this crime,” he said.

By law, Lockhart must serve a full 30-year sentence, with credit for more than two years served in the county jail.

Co-defendant Seneca Berry, who was 15 when the robbery occurred, pleaded guilty and is now serving 17 years in prison. The third suspect, Dewaun Tate, who is accused of inflicting Thakkar’s fatal injuries, is awaiting trial.