Sexual assault suspect follows woman from Red Line, attacks her in alley before kissing her, prosecutors say
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A woman frantically banged on someone’s door for help early Sunday when a man followed her from the Belmont station on the CTA’s Red Line, then dragged her into an alley where he sexually assaulted her early Sunday in the Lakeview neighborhood, prosecutors said.
Antoine Jackson, 28, was denied bail by Cook County Judge Arthur Wesley Willis, who called it a “shocking crime” during a hearing Saturday that was audiostreamed live on YouTube.
Jackson, who was charged with two counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault with a weapon, aggravated robbery and kidnapping, was also wanted on a warrant for robbery.
It was about 3:50 a.m. when Jackson began trailing the woman from the Belmont station platform as she began walking home, Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Hazel Gumbs said.
Suddenly, she felt someone behind her, so she turned around, but then doubled back and kept on walking. Once in the 3200 block of North Kenmore Avenue, Jackson attacked her, implying he had a weapon, Gumbs said.
“The defendant grabbed the victim’s arm and turned her around,” Gumbs said.
She tried to call 911, but he grabbed her phone and hit her in the face with it before dragging her into an alley.
They passed a door.
“She banged on that door in an effort to get some help,” Gumbs said, adding he then forced her down a set of stairs, where he sexually assaulted her multiple times before “kissing her.”
She fled on foot, called her boyfriend, who then called 911, and she was taken to a hospital.
Police later found evidence in the stairwell, a personal item from the victim, and recovered video evidence from the CTA and street videos, which allegedly showed Jackson following her.
On Wednesday, the victim identified him in a photo array and noticed he was wearing the same clothes and shoes shown on the video.
Gumbs said Jackson admitted meeting a woman, and he said he assaulted her “because he was high.”
In addition to being on probation for the robbery relating to the warrant, Jackson has one felony conviction and at least one misdemeanor conviction for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon from 2016.
Cook County Assistant Public Defender Courtney Smallwood said the video did not show anyone’s face, just pants that appeared to be the same ones he had been wearing. Also, Smallwood contended there were no DNA swabs done, and that should be taken into account.
Jackson, the father of two children, 12 and 9, is engaged to a woman who is expecting his third child, Smallwood said. He graduated from Roosevelt High School and has been employed as a factory worker.
“This court finds you are a danger to the community,” Willis said before denying bail for Jackson, who was arrested Thursday in the 7500 block of South Stewart Avenue, police said.
Jackson is due back in court on Monday.
