A man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for carjacking a driver using a makeshift weapon—a Swiss Army knife affixed to a stick. Kendall Johnson, 51, approached a vehicle in a strip mall parking lot four days after being released to await trial for a misdemeanor criminal damage charge in January 2024, prosecutors stated.
The incident occurred while a 40-year-old driver was waiting for his wife outside a store in the 6800 block of South Stony Island Avenue. Johnson tapped on the driver’s window with what appeared to be a “rifle-shaped object” concealed in a black plastic bag, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors revealed that Johnson pointed the weapon—later identified as a stick with a Swiss Army knife attached—at the victim’s head, demanding money. The driver managed to push the weapon away, leading to a struggle in which Johnson tore the victim’s fanny pack, causing him to fall to the ground.
The victim seized the opportunity to escape through the passenger-side door. Johnson pursued him into a laundromat, where the victim hid, before chasing him again, prosecutors mentioned in a detention petition.
Johnson then reportedly returned to the victim’s 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe and drove away.
Chicago police quickly located the vehicle using the city’s license plate reader network. When officers activated their emergency lights, Johnson pulled over and was arrested after the victim identified him as the attacker.
Court records indicate that Johnson pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular hijacking with a weapon. Judge James Novy sentenced him to eight years in prison, with a reduction for the 830 days Johnson spent in custody and over 500 days of additional credit earned during incarceration. Factoring in the state’s standard 50% sentence reduction, Johnson is scheduled for release on August 6.
