Girl, 11, escapes in Aurora hijacking; Chicago man arrested

A 20-year-old Chicago man has been charged with hijacking a vehicle with an 11-year-old girl inside on Aurora's far east side, police said Saturday. The girl jumped from the vehicle as it accelerated through a gas station parking lot and was not hurt.

Tyrelle L. Pulley, of the 5000 block of South Princeton Avenue, has been charged with aggravated vehicular hijacking, aggravated unlawful possession of a stolen motor vehicle, and fleeing and eluding police. He is being held in the DuPage County jail. A bond hearing is scheduled for Sunday.

Police said that around 5:45 a.m. Friday, Pulley arrived at a gas station in the 1200 block of North Eola Road in a blue Dodge Charger that pulled up next to a 2018 Jeep Cherokee, whose owner was getting ready to fill it with gas. Pulley jumped into the Jeep, whose owner's daughter was inside, police said. The Jeep and Dodge drove off in the same direction, and the girl managed to escape.

A short time later, Illinois State Police spotted the Jeep in the area of I-88 and the Eisenhower Expressway and pursued it eastbound until it crashed near First Avenue in Maywood, where Pulley was arrested, police said in a news release. No one was injured in the crash.

Police are investigating the identity of the accomplice who drove the Dodge.

Anyone with information is asked to call (630) 256-5500 or Aurora Area Crime Stoppers at (630) 892-1000. Information called into Crime Stoppers is anonymous and qualifies for a cash reward if it leads to an arrest.