Chicago man gets 15 years in federal prison for violent carjacking spree involving infant

CHICAGO — A Chicago man has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for his role in a violent string of carjackings and armed robberies that included an incident where a vehicle was stolen with an infant in the back seat.

DWIGHT HASBERRY, 32, was sentenced on July 10 by U.S. District Judge Manish Shah for his involvement in a series of crimes that occurred during the overnight hours of Sept. 28 and 29, 2022. Hasberry and co-defendants DAMANDRE HENLEY, TYLER OATES-NELSON, and DAVARIO MCDOWELL have been in custody since their arrests later that year. The three co-defendants were previously sentenced to prison terms ranging from 15 to 22 years.

The crew’s first carjacking took place in Chicago’s West Town neighborhood, where Henley, Hasberry, and McDowell pointed guns at a driver and an infant in a rear car seat. The driver was able to remove the child from the vehicle before the men took off in the stolen Volkswagen Tiguan SUV.

Shortly afterward, the group drove to the Ravenswood Manor neighborhood, where three of the men robbed two individuals at gunpoint, stealing a cell phone, wallet, keys, and a backpack.

The group then targeted a 7-Eleven convenience store, where Henley, McDowell, and Hasberry entered armed. Oates-Nelson waited in the stolen SUV while Henley struck a store clerk in the head with a gun and forced him to open the register. The group left with cash, cigarettes, and liquor bottles.

“Defendant’s crimes terrorized innocent Chicagoans and showed a complete disregard for human life, for societal norms, and for the law,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Elie Zenner wrote in a sentencing memo submitted to the court.

The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros, FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas S. DePodesta, and Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling.

Hasberry’s prison term marks the final sentencing in the case, which involved a coordinated law enforcement response and federal prosecution.

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