Illinois man sentenced for carjacking woman whose young children witnessed crime from the backseat

An Illinois man was sentenced Wednesday for carjacking a woman’s car while her two young children were sitting inside the vehicle.

Kewan Tillman, 20, will spend 10 years in federal prison after he pleaded guilty earlier this year to federal carjacking and firearm charges.

On the afternoon of July 27, 2022, Tillman approached the woman with a pistol while she was entering her Kia Optima with her two young children inside, at a Thorntons gas station in Posen, Illinois.

The 20-year-old pointed the gun at the mother and demanded her keys, prosecutors said. 

In a press release, Illinois prosecutors said Tillman approached the unidentified victim with a loaded handgun.

After handing over her keys, the victim managed to quickly remove her two children from the back of her car.

Authorities say that Tillman sped off, but quickly lost control of the vehicle. He then got out and ran back toward the gas station, where he unsuccessfully attempted to force his way into an occupied semi-truck.  

Tillman discarded the handgun in a sewer, and then tried to once again force his way into another vehicle that was parked at a gas pump. 

Prosecutors say that Tillman got into a fight with the driver of that vehicle until the deputies with the Posen Police Department responded and arrested him.

Upon further investigation, police found the discarded handgun had a “Glock switch,” which is also known as an “auto sear.” Authorities said that Tillman’s gun was only capable of firing in fully automatic mode at the time of its discovery. 

Tillman initially drove to the gas station in a Kia Soul that had been reported stolen in Chicago.