Charges have been filed in yet another recent robbery aboard the Red Line downtown. And the accused man was reportedly arrested in Wisconsin last year while riding in a vehicle that had been carjacked in Chicago.
Prosecutors say 18-year-old Phillip Alexander approached a 36-year-old man and took money from the victim’s pocket as they rode a southbound Red Line train around 1:30 a.m. on Jan. 31. At that point, a woman pushed the victim, knocking him onto the train’s seats. Alexander then punched the man in the face and ran from the train when it arrived at the Chicago station, police said.
Officers scoured the area and found Alexander standing with a small group of people near State and Chestnut a few minutes later. The victim identified Alexander as one of the offenders, police said. So far, the woman who allegedly helped with the robbery has not been found.
Prosecutors charged Alexander with felony robbery and police served him with a warrant out of Janesville, Wisc. Judge Arthur Willis ordered him held without bail on the warrant and set bail at $10,000 for the robbery charge.
According to Wisconsin media reports, Janesville police arrested Alexander in January 2019 after they received information that a stolen vehicle was approaching their city on Interstate 90.
Janesville police learned that the stolen car was taken by two armed, masked carjackers in Chicago.
Alexander was charged by Wisconsin authorities with being a passenger in a stolen vehicle. Court records show Alexander received a sentence of two years probation and was ordered to complete high school.