Cook County man sentenced for stealing woman’s car while 2 children were inside

Cook County man who carjacked woman with kids get 10-year sentence

A Cook County man was sentenced after carjacking a woman at gunpoint while her kids were in the car last year. The carjacking occurred at a gas station in the south suburbs over a year ago.

POSEN, Ill. - A man form Calumet City was sentenced Friday for carjacking a woman in Chicago's south suburbs last summer.

Kewan Tillman, 20, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for taking a vehicle from a woman while her two children were inside.

The victim was able to get her children out before Tillman sped off.

The carjacking happened on the afternoon of July 27, 2022, at Thorntons gas station in Posen.

Prosecutors say the woman was entering the driver’s seat of her Kia Optima when Tillman pointed a loaded handgun at her, and demanded the key.

Tillman quickly lost control of the vehicle after fleeing. He then got out and ran back toward the gas station, where he unsuccessfully attempted to force his way into an occupied semi-truck.

Kewan Tillman carjacks woman at gunpoint. (US Attorney's Office)

He ditched the handgun in a sewer and tried to force his way into another vehicle that was parked at a gas pump. Tillman got into a fight with the driver of that vehicle. That's when Posen police officers arrested him.

The officers discovered the handgun in the sewer. The gun was equipped with a "Glock switch," also known as an "auto sear," and at the time was only capable of firing in fully automatic mode, prosecutors say.

Tillman initially drove to the gas station in a Kia Soul that had been reported stolen in Chicago.

He pleaded guilty earlier this year to federal carjacking and firearm charges.