Streamwood detective describes how robbery suspect was caught
Detective Eric Pagels testified Wednesday that a conversation with another suspect led him to Freddie Clemons, one of three men who Cook County prosecutors say robbed a Streamwood Aldi at gunpoint in 2012.
The Streamwood detective told jurors in Clemons' trial that Clemons, 45, became a suspect in the Oct. 23, 2012, robbery after Pagels spoke with co-defendant Derrick Shelby, whom police apprehended outside the store moments after the robbery.
Clemons is currently on trial in Rolling Meadows on charges of armed robbery and unlawful restraint.
Shelby, 52, pleaded guilty to the robbery in 2013, and was sentenced to nine years in prison. Charges against a third defendant, Joseph Bobbitt, 48, are still pending.
Employees previously testified that Clemons and two other men entered the grocery store located in the 900 block of East Irving Park Road shortly after 9 p.m. as employees were preparing to close. The employees said Clemons, who was described as wearing a black hoodie, pointed a revolver at a cashier and ordered her to remove money from her drawer, saying "This isn't your money. We don't want to hurt you."
Pagels testified that, after speaking with Shelby, he retrieved a photo of Clemons from a police database and created a lineup featuring photos of six men, including Clemons. From that photo lineup, all four employees identified Clemons as the man holding the gun, with two of them telling police they were "100 percent sure" of their identification.
The employees also identified the revolver, which police recovered from nearby McKool Avenue, Pagels said.
After leaving the store, Clemons and Bobbitt ran, authorities said. Police located Bobbitt a short time later, hiding in a bush, prosecutors said.
Police visited several addresses associated with Clemons but were unable to locate him, Pagels said. After obtaining an arrest warrant for him, they learned that another agency had Clemons in custody, Pagels said.
Deliberations will likely begin Thursday.