CHICAGO — A man has been given a 15-year prison sentence for a robbery attempt that involved shots being fired on the Roosevelt Red Line platform last year.
Lamont Johnson, 23, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to one count of attempted robbery in exchange for the sentence from Judge Angela Munari-Petrone. Prosecutors dropped 14 other felonies, including three counts of attempted murder, according to court records.
Late on May 5, 2023, Johnson agreed to buy pot from a 21-year-old man as they rode the train, prosecutors said, but the deal fell through because Johnson didn’t have money to pay for it.
When the 21-year-old exited at Roosevelt, Johnson stepped in front of him, put a gun to his stomach, and demanded that he give him everything, according to prosecutors. As they struggled over the weapon, both men fell to the platform, and the victim grabbed the gun barrel.
During the fight, the gun fired up to four times, prosecutors claimed. Chicago police said the victim suffered a graze wound to his shoulder, but later said he was not injured. However, prosecutors said last year that the victim was grazed.
At a point when the victim was on top of Johnson, an accomplice told Johnson to “finish” the victim and then bit the victim on the back. The victim broke away and ran upstairs to get help from a CTA employee.
A CTA surveillance officer radioed descriptions of the suspects to Chicago police patrol units, and Johnson was arrested about two hours later near Printer’s Row.
Prosecutors said Johnson had a gun in his backpack that was jammed with a spent casing in its chamber.
With good behavior, Johnson will be eligible for parole after serving half of the 15-year term.
