Two men have pleaded guilty to having roles in the attack, stabbing, and robbery of an on-duty Chicago Police Department homicide detective while he worked a case in South Shore last year.
Kenyon Washington, 25, pleaded guilty to attempted murder in exchange for a 12-year sentence, according to court records. His accomplice, Samuel Flowers, 19, received 4½ years after pleading guilty to aggravated battery of a peace officer. Judge Vincent Gaughan handed down the sentences.
Prosecutors dropped more than a dozen felonies against both men as part of their plea deals, including attempted murder, armed robbery, aggravated battery, and unlawful restraint.
During bail hearings last year, prosecutors said Washington and Flowers attacked the detective on February 8, 2021, as he searched for video cameras that may have captured a recent murder on the 7700 block of South Yates.
The cop, who had been on the force more than 25 years, was working in plain clothes when Washington and Flowers attacked him from behind, prosecutors alleged. He fell to the ground as Flowers allegedly pointed a gun at his head and demanded his property.
Flowers and Washington then kicked the detective in the head and body as the cop repeatedly identified himself as a police officer and pleaded with the men, screaming that they “don’t have to do this,” according to the allegations.
Washington allegedly stabbed at the detective’s neck, causing relatively minor cuts to the officer’s neck and head. Prosecutors said the cop was able to deflect the knife, which reduced the seriousness of his injuries.
The attackers ran away as the detective’s partner, who was working nearby, came running to his aid.
Investigators found a knife stained with the victim’s blood in the area and DNA tests further linked it to Washington, prosecutors said. Washington allegedly admitted to the crime.
Washington, who received a five year prison sentence for robbery in 2015, repeatedly interrupted his bail hearing last year to complain that prosecutors “make me seem like I’m a bad person.”
According to Illinois Department of Corrections records, Washington is scheduled to be paroled on June 30, 2031. Flowers is slated for release on July 24, 2023.
