Bureau County grand jury indicts four men accused of stealing man’s vehicle at knifepoint

BUREAU COUNTY, Ill. – A Bureau County grand jury indicted four men accused of robbing a man and stealing his vehicle at knifepoint in Princeton in September.

Each of the four men were indicted on charges of Armed Robbery, Aggravated Vehicular Hijacking, and Aggravated Kidnapping, all Class X Felonies.

Allegations.

^{Victim identified by initials, TS.}

On Sep. 7, prosecutors say Smith contacted TS and asked if he could pick him up in Sterling to drive him to Princeton.

After being picked up in Sterling, on the way to Princeton, Smith asked TS for $150, of which TS declined to give him.

They then drove through McDonald’s in Princeton to grab food before driving to the parking lot by the Captain Swift Bridge.

While TS was parked in his 2016 Honda CRV, a 2009 black Kia Spectra entered the lot and parked behind him, blocking him in.

Prosecutors say Stunkel, Eagelston and Cannone exited the Kia, joined Smith, and pulled TS out of his Honda before hitting and kicking him in the head and body.

The suspects then held TS at knifepoint with a blade of a little more than four inches. They tried taking money from TS through an app on his phone, but was unsuccessful, court documents show.

In addition to his phone, the suspects stole TS’s wallet, iPad, Airpods and Apple Watch, court documents show.

After the failed attempt to steal money through the phone app, TS offered to take them to an ATM to get money, court documents show.

TS was placed in the back seat of his Honda, sitting next to Smith who was holding the knife, while Stunkel took control in the driver’s seat, court documents show.

Eagelston and Cannone got back into the Kia, driven by an unnamed individual, and followed the Honda out of the parking lot, court documents show.

The escape.

While stopped at a nearby intersection, TS was able to escape from his Honda and get the attention of a passing vehicle.

Both Stunkel and Smith then exited the Honda, got back into the Kia, and fled the scene, court documents show.

TS was able to call 911, and his mother, using the passerby’s phone.

When his mother arrived, TS used her phone to log on and track the location of his stolen devices to Baker Lake Park in Peru, of which is a little more than 20 miles east.

The Peru Police Department was notified and one of their officers located the Kia at a gas station in Peru with all four suspects, including a woman who was driving.

A knife and TS’s stolen items were found inside the vehicle, court documents show.

The suspects were identified through information gathered from TS and surveillance video gathered from the Captain Swift parking lot and Peru gas station, court documents show.

On Jan. 9, a grand jury returned the three-count indictment against each suspect and a warrant was issued for their arrest.

On Jan. 22, Smith was arrested, followed by Eagelston and Stunkel on Feb. 4, and Cannone on Feb. 5, jail records show.

What comes next?

A judge denied pretrial release for each of the four suspects. As of Feb. 16, they remain in custody at the Bureau County Jail.

The suspects are scheduled to return to court March 11 at 9:30 a.m. for jury pretrial with a jury trial as early as March 30.

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