A Venezuelan migrant whom U.S. officials deemed “inadmissable” at the southern border in 2023 has been detained after prosecutors said he used a Facebook Marketplace laptop sale to lure a Lakeview man into an armed robbery Wednesday night.
The 27-year-old victim made arrangements online to sell a MacBook for $550 and, at about 10:30 p.m., he met the prospective buyer in front of his home in the 700 block of West Belmont Avenue, prosecutors said in a detention filing. Maykel Gonzalez Demaria, 19, arrived alone in a blue Toyota Corolla, and the men communicated through translation apps on their phones.
Demaria allegedly asked the victim to open the front passenger door so he could inspect the laptop. The victim placed the MacBook on the passenger seat but kept one hand on it as Demaria looked it over and powered it on. Demaria also asked to see the charging block and cable before asking for the final price. When the victim said $550, Demaria allegedly reached into the back seat, pulled out a firearm, racked the slide, and pointed it at him.
The victim released the laptop, and Demaria motioned for him to close the passenger door, prosecutors said. As the victim complied, Demaria allegedly racked the slide again, ejecting a live round onto the passenger seat. The victim then closed the door and watched the Corolla drive away, managing to photograph its license plate and quickly provide the image to Chicago police.
About 10 minutes later, officers spotted the Corolla and pulled Demaria over in the 2500 block of North Cannon Drive, about a block from the Lincoln Park Zoo. The victim was brought to the scene and identified Demaria as the robber, prosecutors said. A search of the Corolla turned up a 9mm pistol with an extended magazine, the victim’s MacBook, and the live round that had been ejected onto the passenger seat, according to the detention filing.
During an inventory of the vehicle, police also collected five cell phones and an HP laptop, according to CPD records. The pistol was reported stolen in Milwaukee, police determined.
Prosecutors said Demaria was deemed “inadmissable” at a border crossing in Laredo, Texas, in November 2023. His current immigration status was not known. However, he has been arrested twice in Cook County since then — in 2024 and again in 2025 — for driving without a license, the detention filing said.
Judge Rivanda Doss Beal ordered Demaria detained on charges of armed robbery and aggravated unlawful use or possession of a weapon.
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