2nd teen in custody in Facebook assault: cops
A second teenage boy is in custody in connection with the gang rape of a 15- yearold girl that was streamed live on Facebook last month from the Lawndale neighborhood.
The 15- year- old boy was accompanied by his mother when he turned himself in on Monday morning at the Ogden District police station, according to police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. He has been charged as a juvenile with criminal sexual assault and manufacturing and distributing child pornography, Guglielmi said.
He is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday.
A 14- year- old boy accused of participating in the assault and facing the same charges was ordered held after his initial hearing Monday.
The 14- year- old boy’s mother, father, sister and brother were at the county’s Southwest Side juvenile courthouse on Monday but did not attend the boy’s hearing, according to Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Emily Czerniejewski. Associate Judge Patricia Mendoza scheduled his next hearing for April 28.
The boys have not been named because they are minors.
An arrest warrant was issued for the 15- year- old boy over the weekend. Police continue to search for others involved in the attack.
At least five or six attackers participated in the assault on the girl, who police said was lured into the basement of a building not far from her home in the Lawndale neighborhood on March 19.
“The victim knew one of the offenders,” Chicago Police Cmdr. Brendan Deenihan said at a news conference on Sunday. “I don’t want to go too much into detail, but I’m going to say she was lured into the residence, and then from there she was not allowed to leave, and she didn’t consent to what occurred.”
The girl was found about 7: 45 a. m. March 21 at the intersection of 16th and Independence by 10th District officers, police said. She was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital and was reunited with her family.
As many as 40 people watched online as the girl was assaulted, but none reported it to police, Johnson said.
“It just disgusts me that people can look at those videos and not pick up the phone and not dial 911,” Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said Sunday, calling the case “absolutely horrific.”