Man Charged in Federal Court With Chicago Carjacking

CHICAGO — A federal grand jury has indicted a man on carjacking and firearm charges for allegedly violently stealing a vehicle from a woman in Chicago earlier this year.

MONTE HANDLEY, 18, of Chicago, stole a Nissan Sentra on Jan. 17, 2022, according to an indictment returned in U.S. District Court in Chicago.  The carjacking allegedly occurred in the 5000 block of South Kolin Avenue in the Archer Heights neighborhood on Chicago’s Southwest Side.  In addition to the driver, another woman and a one-year-old child were passengers in the vehicle at the time of the alleged carjacking.

The indictment charges Handley with carjacking and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.  The carjacking count is punishable by up to 15 years in federal prison.  The firearm count carries a minimum prison term of seven years and a maximum of life, which must be served consecutively to any sentence imposed for the alleged carjacking. 

Handley is currently in law enforcement custody.  Arraignment in federal court is set for Oct. 5, 2022, at 1:30 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sunil R. Harjani.

The indictment was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Ashley T. Johnson, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI; and David Brown, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department.  The Illinois State Police provided valuable assistance in the investigation.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Vermylen and Prashant Kolluri.

The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.  If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.