Chicago Men Face Carjacking Charges In Skokie, Morton Grove Thefts

SKOKIE, IL — Two Chicago men have been indicted on carjacking charges in connection with the violent theft of cars on the North Shore in recent months, prosecutors announced Friday.

Federal prosecutors said that Edson Resendez, 21, and Maverick Cela, 21, both of Chicago, forcibly took cars in Morton Grove and Skokie, according to an indictment that was unsealed in federal court last week in Chicago. Both men were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit carjackings and two counts of carjacking, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois announced.

Resendez also faces an additional count of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, prosecutors said. Resendez was arrested late last week and is scheduled to be arraigned in federal court on Tuesday.

Cela is in the custody of the state of Illinois, prosecutors said. His arraignment in federal court has not yet been scheduled.

The indictment says that Resendez and Cela took a Chevrolet Sonic from a victim in Morton Grove on Sept. 11, 2020. Prosecutors alleged that Cela then disposed of the vehicle by lighting it on fire in the 6200 block of North Lincoln Avenue in Chicago.

Two days later, Resendez and Cela took a Lexus GS350 from a victim in Skokie, prosecutors said states. The men later disposed of the vehicle in the 4800 block of South Hermitage Avenue in Chicago, the indictment states.

Each carjacking count is punishable by up to 15 years in federal prison, prosecutors said. The firearm count against Resendez carries a minimum prison sentence of seven years and a maximum of life, which must be served consecutively to the sentence imposed for the carjacking offense. The conspiracy charge is punishable by up to five years.