Attacker convicted in rape, robbery of 87-year-old Westmont woman
Just more than 36 hours after an 87-year-old Westmont woman was raped and robbed in her apartment, authorities already were closing in on her attacker.
That's when police found a gun with her DNA and that of 23-year-old Tevin Rainey in a car Rainey was riding in as he left the very same apartment complex he forced the woman to drive him to the previous morning.
DuPage Judge Brian Telander said that evidence, along with testimony from the victim and several witnesses, was key in convicting Rainey Thursday of all eights counts against him.
Rainey, after a two-week bench trial, was convicted of three counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault, two counts of home invasion, and one count each of armed robbery, armed violence and aggravated kidnapping. He faces between 57 and 120 years in prison at his sentencing later this year.
Rainey glared at Telander after the ruling and asked "How did you find me guilty of this?"
He then turned and said to family members, "This is (expletive) up."
The victim, who Telander said was "extremely credible," testified she was sleeping around 5 a.m. Jan. 1, 2015, when a bright light woke her and she discovered a man removing her clothes.
The man sexually assaulted her. After the attack, she said, the man told her to get dressed and ordered her to come with him to get money.
She then drove the man to the TCF Bank on Plainfield Road in Willowbrook where she withdrew a combined $300 from her checking and savings accounts and gave it to him.
After taking the money, the man ordered her to drive him to a Woodridge apartment complex where he occasionally stayed with his aunt.
"This defendant chose (the victim) because he thought he could control her," Assistant State's Attorney Cathy DeLaMar said in her closing arguments. "And it was that misplaced confidence that led to the brazen and incredibly stupid decision to have her drive him home."
The victim said she asked the man for directions back to her apartment. After returning home and calling 911, she was treated for her injuries at a nearby hospital.
"Just over two years ago, armed with a handgun, (Rainey) broke into an elderly woman's home and sexually assaulted her in such a way that the mere thought of it makes my stomach turn," DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said after the verdict. "And if that wasn't enough, (Rainey) then kidnapped the woman at gunpoint and forced her to withdraw ($300) from her bank accounts. I cannot begin to imagine the terror that poor woman must have felt by simply being in the presence of (Rainey)."
Experts testified that DNA collected from the grip of Rainey's gun, two places on the inside door handle of the victim's car, her underwear and a hooded sweatshirt Rainey was wearing contained samples from both Rainey and the victim.
The manager of a nearby gas station also testified he recognized Rainey as a "frequent" customer on the morning of the attack when Rainey didn't have enough money to purchase a pair of gloves and a box of condoms.
Assistant Public Defender Jennifer Maples argued that Rainey was wrongly accused in a case that focused on "assumptions, probability and guesswork."
She specifically questioned some of the DNA evidence and said no security cameras captured Rainey on film with the victim.
"It's the wrong guy," Maples said. "Tevin Rainey is not guilty of any of these crimes."
Rainey is next due in court on Feb. 15 when his sentencing date likely will be scheduled.