Men deny Gurnee gas station robbery

Three downstate men pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges they stole a woman's wallet at a Gurnee gas station then fired a gunshot at a station clerk who tried to break up the robbery.

Lamar Hicks, 17, Travis Fleming, 36, and Kavin Spivey, 29, all from St. Anne in Kankakee County, are charged with armed robbery, armed violence, aggravated discharge of a firearm and attempted murder in the Dec. 1 incident.

Lake County Assistant State's Attorney Ari Fisz said Spivey, the alleged gunman, also faces an additional charge of armed habitual felon because of his prior criminal record.

Police said the woman was pumping gas into her car at the Shell station at 6050 Route 132 when Spivey and Hicks approached her as she sat in her vehicle.

Spivey reached into the car and grabbed the wallet, police said, and when the woman began to fight him for it he dragged her out of the car and threw her on the ground.

A station clerk saw the commotion and chased the pair as they ran toward a pickup truck where, police said, Fleming was waiting.

Spivey turned and fired two shots at the clerk, police said, and the three escaped in the truck.

One of the woman's credit cards was used a short time later at a gas station in southern Wisconsin, and police used a videotape from the gas station to identify the truck.

The license plate was traced to a relative of one of the suspects, who directed police to a house in St. Anne where all three were arrested a few days later.

Circuit Judge Fred Foreman scheduled a trial for March 10 and ordered all three to appear in court again Feb. 19.

They each face up to 60 years in prison if convicted.

Spivey and Fleming are being held in the Lake County jail on $2 million bond, while Hicks' bond is $1 million.