A Waukegan man has been sentenced to 21 years in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated vehicular hijacking, according to Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul. Elijah Monette, 22, received the sentence from Lake County Circuit Court Judge James Booras following an incident in which a woman and her 10-year-old son were forced out of their SUV at gunpoint.
The event took place in March 2024 at a Target parking lot in Waukegan. Monette and two juveniles approached the vehicle, ordered the occupants out at gunpoint, and drove away with the SUV. Officers from the Waukegan Police Department located Monette and the juveniles on a traffic camera about half an hour later. After a 20-minute car chase that reached speeds of up to 120 mph, police arrested Monette and recovered multiple handguns.
Four additional juveniles are facing charges related to this case. The driver of the vehicle during the chase, J’Corey Lewis, age 17 of Waukegan, is being tried as an adult in Lake County Circuit Court. Charges against other juveniles are pending with the Lake County Juvenile Detention Court.
Attorney General Raoul stated: “What started as a terrifying ordeal for a mother and her young son, resulted in a high-speed chase that jeopardized the safety of the community. The collaboration between my office and the Waukegan Police Department was instrumental in our ability to hold this individual responsible for this crime and compromising public safety.”
Waukegan Police Department Deputy Chief Craig Neal commented: “It is a pleasure to learn of the court decision resulting from the combined efforts of Waukegan Patrol Officers, Waukegan Criminal Investigators, and the Attorney General’s Office. Working collaboratively, we were able to successfully hold suspects accountable for their crimes while committing an aggravated vehicular hijacking. This horrendous act forever impacted the life of a victim and their family. Our hope is the justice served acts as a deterrent for others seeking to commit such crimes.”
Deputy Bureau Chief Jonathan McKay and Supervising Attorney Daniel Weiler prosecuted this case for Raoul’s Criminal Prosecutions Bureau.
The Illinois Attorney General’s office regularly works with law enforcement agencies across Illinois to support crime victims and promote open government (https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/index). The office also extends advocacy efforts statewide by protecting vulnerable groups such as workers, immigrants, seniors (https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/index), handling thousands of consumer complaints each year (https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/index), promoting safer communities (https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/index), advocating on environmental issues (https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/index), and offering services like complaint filing for consumer fraud or civil rights violations (https://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/index).
