Two men have been charged with committing a violent early-morning robbery on a CTA Red Line train in October, with one suspect reportedly apprehended six days later using a fake name while in possession of the victim’s stolen identification, according to prosecutors and court records.
Kendall Ross, 19, Bodarious Minor, 27, and an unidentified third person attacked and robbed a 23-year-old Evergreen Park man around 3:40 a.m. on October 12 while riding a train to the 69th Street Red Line station, according to a detention filing.
The victim told Chicago police that he was on his way home when the group approached him on the train. Minor allegedly attacked him in the face and chest, and Ross joined in, according to the filing. Prosecutors alleged Ross snatched the man’s backpack during the altercation.
When the train came to a stop at 69th Street, CTA workers saw what was going on, and all robbers fled with the victim’s backpack, according to the charges.
A break in the investigation occurred six days later, when police responded to an unrelated 911 call from someone reporting a strange individual standing near their car’s trunk. When officers arrived, the man, identified as “Troy Cooper,” was found with the caller’s belongings, according to the detention document.
However, fingerprint analysis indicated that “Troy Cooper” was actually Ross, and police discovered the robbery victim’s driver’s license and Social Security card in his hands, prosecutors said.
Several police who watched CTA surveillance footage recognized Ross in the photographs. However, charges were postponed because the victim was unable to identify him in a photo lineup.
When questioned, Ross denied being on the train the morning of the crime, according to the affidavit. However, when given a time-stamped image from CTA video of one of the suspects, prosecutors said he admitted it looked like him but claimed he didn’t recall being there. When shown another image of the same person clutching the victim’s backpack, Ross allegedly stated that he had no idea who it was.
Ross is accused with robbery and criminal violence on a transport passenger. Judge Shauna Boliker ordered him imprisoned without bail. Court documents reveal that Minor has been jailed on identical allegations since October 27 by order of Judge Robert Kuzas.
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