Robber gets 17-year sentence for Lake Bluff cellphone store heist

A Chicago man was sentenced to 17 years in prison after pleading guilty last week to the armed robbery of a Lake County cellphone store.

Aries Rickenbacker, 25, of the 8000 block of South Vernon Avenue, served as his own attorney in reaching the plea deal stemming from the Sept. 18, 2017 heist at the business on the 200 block of South Waukegan Road in Lake Bluff.

"This was a win-win situation for everyone involved. An armed offender was sent to prison for a crime he admitted he committed, but the sentence also allows him an opportunity to rehabilitate in order to become a better citizen," Lake County State's Attorney Michael G. Nerheim said in an announcement of the plea agreement. "We hope he takes that time and uses it wisely."

Co-defendant Cordell Prince, 22, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to armed robbery on March 2, 2018, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Getaway driver Eddie Hill, 26, of Chicago pleaded guilty to armed robbery Nov. 29 and was sentenced to 9½ years in prison.