Driver acquitted in Carol Stream armed robbery
The man who walked into a Carol Stream 7-Eleven about 10:15 p.m. on Jan. 26, 2015, and put a gun in the face of two clerks, demanding their money and the store's money, is serving 23 years in an Illinois prison. The man prosecutors allege drove him to and from the store beat two counts of armed robbery Thursday in DuPage County.
A 12-member jury deliberated for less than two hours Thursday before acquitting 24-year-old Quincy Skanes, of Glen Ellyn.
Skanes did not testify and his attorneys called no witnesses in his defense. But Senior Assistant Public Defender Val Pacis and Assistant Public Defender Michael Sweeney maintained Skanes was merely an innocent pawn that snowy night when Johnny Holmes, also of Glen Ellyn, texted him for a ride home from the Carol Stream convenience store.
In their opening and closing arguments, the defense attorneys maintained it wasn't until Holmes got in the car and started counting cash, and gave Skanes $100, that Skanes realized what Holmes had done.
Less than an hour after the robbery, Glen Ellyn police officer Kevin Riggle observed a man, later identified as Holmes, walking along a street. Riggle testified Wednesday that Holmes matched the description of the man who robbed the 7-Eleven, right down to his brown boots, so he attempted to talk to Holmes.
Holmes ran about 200 yards from Riggle and another officer before he was apprehended.
Later that evening prosecutors alleged Skanes texted Holmes "Yo." When Holmes did not reply, Skanes assumed the worst and deleted all calls and texts between him and Holmes. Prosecutors said Holmes didn't have time to do the same.
"This case is all about Johnny. We've proven Johnny alone committed this crime," Pacis said in her closing arguments. "All of the evidence points to Johnny, Johnny, Johnny."
Carol Stream police Cpl. Kelly Lally testified Thursday that after forensically examining both phones, it appeared it was actually Skanes who texted Holmes, telling him he was outside Holmes' residence and urging him to hurry up, around 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 26, 2015.
Prosecutors also played recorded police interviews where Skanes admitted to "seeing the gun before" and said Holmes "knows how we work" when discussing other robberies being investigated by the detectives.
Prosecutors also played a series of phone calls Skanes placed from jail between Aug. 17 and Aug. 31 of this year to his girlfriend and others telling them to locate which prison Holmes was serving time in and discussing how to "put a muzzle on all that barking" and prevent Holmes from testifying against him.
Despite that, prosecutors were never able to put Skanes at the scene of the armed robbery through witness testimony or physical evidence. The clerks said they saw no car drive away after the robbery and they never saw Skanes.
Surveillance cameras posted in front of the store, but not the side where Skanes parked, did not show any vehicles leaving around the time of the robbery.
Skanes, who has been held on $750,000 bail since his 2015 arrest, now faces two additional trials on charges of aggravated robbery and home invasion in separate cases.
During the armed robbery investigation, officers from the Carol Stream, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn and Lombard police departments were able to connect Skanes and Holmes to a third Glen Ellyn man, Justus Brantley, and additional charges were filed, including some related to a New Year's Day 2015 Carol Stream home invasion.
In that case, a woman woke to find two unknown men in her apartment around 5:30 a.m. One man choked her while the other stole items from her apartment, including her debit card, prosecutors said in bond court. Brantley and Skanes both were charged with home invasion in that case.
The two are believed to have then moved to another apartment, where they stole a TV, authorities say.
Holmes was sentenced in April to 23 years in prison for armed robbery with a firearm and 15 years for armed violence after being convicted by a jury. He is appealing his sentence.
Brantley was sentenced to seven years in prison in November 2017 after being convicted on home invasion charges.
Skanes' next court date is Nov. 6.