Man Gets 50 Years For 'Ruthlessly' Kidnapping, Robbing, 'Terrorizing' Victims: US Attorney

CHICAGO — A Chicago man has been sentenced to 50 years in federal prison for conspiring to abduct several victims at gunpoint in the Chicago suburbs, the U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois said Thursday.

Sedgwick Williams participated in kidnappings in Naperville and Westchester in the fall of 2019. He and a co-conspirator also attempted a third kidnapping in South Holland, but they were unsuccessful and were arrested fleeing from the intended victim’s residence, according to the release.

A federal jury last year convicted Williams, 48, of Chicago, and co-defendant Tai Hon La, 35, of Beach Park, of participating in the kidnapping conspiracy and other related charges. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Jorge L. Alonso sentenced Williams to 50 years in federal prison. La is scheduled to be sentenced on June 3.

Two other defendants pleaded guilty in the case. Ivan Ayers, 37, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to participating in the kidnapping conspiracy and is set to be sentenced on June 10.

Jonathan Vargas, 38, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to kidnapping the first victim in Naperville and is set to be sentenced on June 5.

According to evidence presented at trial, the first kidnapping occurred in Naperville on Oct. 17, 2019. The conspirators posed as law enforcement officers to handcuff and abduct a man at gunpoint outside of his electronics store, which they then burglarized, according to the release from the U.S. Attorney's Office. The conspirators forced the victim into a car and transported him to Chicago, where they assaulted him and extorted his family.

The conspirators carried out the kidnapping in Westchester on Nov. 16, 2019. Posing as federal agents, the conspirators handcuffed and abducted a man at gunpoint outside of his residence. The conspirators forced the victim into his home, where they seized another victim and forced them both into the basement. Two other victims later arrived at the residence and were also forced into the basement at gunpoint. The conspirators stole cash and jewelry before fleeing.

The conspirators attempted the third kidnapping in South Holland on Dec. 11, 2019, but the intended victim was able to call 911 and the South Holland Police arrived before the conspirators could gain access to the house.

“Williams orchestrated a series of incredibly violent abductions and armed robberies throughout Chicago and the neighboring suburbs,” Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jared C. Jodrey and Kate McClelland argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “Williams and his co-conspirators ruthlessly threatened, restrained, beat, robbed, kidnapped, terrorized, and tortured people for their own personal gain.”

Williams’s sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. The case was investigated with assistance from the Naperville Police Department, Westchester Police Department, South Holland Police Department, Chicago Police Department, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office.