United States v. Chukwuemeka Ikegwuonu, No. 15-2408 (7th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CaseThe brothers robbed five Madison businesses at gunpoint. Four times, Jack entered alone while William waited in the getaway car; once they reversed roles. During each robbery, one man demanded money while displaying a nonfunctional, unloaded handgun. They took a total of $1,643. After each robbery, except the last one, when police caught them, they immediately used the money to purchase heroin. Each pled guilty to five counts of Hobbs Act robbery, 18 U.S.C. 1951(a), and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, section 942(c)(1). A probation officer calculated a 63-78 month range for the robberies, plus a consecutive, statutory minimum term of seven years for the firearm count. The court sentenced Jack to 30 and William to 24 months for the robberies, noting that, although they “caused numerous victims to fear for their lives,” the crimes were driven by addiction, were “out of character,” and they quickly accepted responsibility and expressed remorse. The court made several statements that indicated consideration of the additional 924(c)(1) sentence in deciding on prison terms for the robberies. The Seventh Circuit affirmed the sentences, noting that under its precedent, the district court should have determined the sentence for the underlying crime “entirely independently of the section 924(c)(1) add‐on.”
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