Five men in Illinois have been charged in the armed robbery of attendees at a house party, overnight. Three of the suspects are on parole, and are accused of hitting a home in the Joliet Township, with police being called to the scene at around 3:30 a.m.
Rodney G. Parks, 22, Darius Strong, 24, Deathray Anderson, 22, Elijah Watson, 17, and Mitchell M. Thompson, 18, were all charged with home invasion and robbery. Most of the suspects hail from Joliet, while Strong is from Chicago. Strong, Parks and Anderson are all currently on parole.
Four of the five entered the party wearing dark clothing, and used either scarves or masks, to hide their identities. Shortly after walking through the door, they began jacking guests for their wallets, cell phones, and money. The suspects fled the scene on foot.
Authorities were able to tie the men to a vehicle driven by Strong. Further investigation revealed that Strong was not the owner and had not been given permission to drive of the vehicle. The car owner claimed to have no knowledge of the three people who returned to his home with the vehicle.
When police showed up to the address on the car’s registry they heard one person at the door yell out a warning to the others. The person who opened the door tried to stop authorities from entering the residence, buying time for the others, who ran away, but were apprehended.
Once inside, investigators found weapons believed to have been used during the robbery, as well as items belonging to the victims.
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Photo: Will County Sheriff’s Department
