A judge this week sentenced a man to 40 years in prison for murdering a beloved Hyde Park bartender while he had three felony cases pending in juvenile court, two involving illegal gun possession and one involving armed carjacking.
But Keante McShan, 23, may have even more prison time ahead of him. Court records show he is preparing to enter a plea next week in an unrelated kidnapping case.
Surveillance video allegedly showed McShan checking parked car doors in the area of the 4900 block of South Greenwood Avenue to see if they were unlocked before he spotted Diego Damis, 41, who was walking home after his shift at The Cove Lounge around 5 a.m. on February 25, 2022.
Prosecutors said McShan approached Damis, stabbed him repeatedly, and took his wallet, cash, and bank card. Video showed Damis kneeling on the grass next to the sidewalk as the attacker ran away. He then fell backward and remained there for more than an hour until a passerby discovered him and called for help.
Surveillance video allegedly showed McShan returning to check car doors as he left the area after the killing. Prosecutors said he used Damis’ bank card to buy a box of Newport cigarettes at a gas station shortly after the crime. The purchase was captured on video.
Investigators used a series of video recordings to track the suspected killer to a South Side apartment building. They searched the address in a law enforcement database and learned that McShan lived there and was wanted on juvenile warrants. Detectives also determined that photographs and videos of McShan from previous incidents were consistent with the person captured in the surveillance footage, prosecutors said.
Police set up surveillance around the apartment building and arrested McShan as he walked out of the complex. He was wearing many of the same distinctive clothing items seen on the attacker, including a multicolored hoodie, prosecutors said. Officers recovered additional clothing associated with the killer, a knife and other evidence from McShan’s apartment, including Damis’ wallet, debit card and Ventra card, prosecutors said.
On Thursday, McShan pleaded guilty to murder and received the four-decade sentence from Judge John Lyke. By law, he must serve all 40 years.
McShan’s kidnapping case was filed two years after his arrest in the murder. Details of that case were not immediately available, but court records show that other defendants include other jail inmates, including another person who was awaiting trial in an unrelated murder.
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