A judge pronounced an 8-year prison sentence for a man who used a Lyft driver last year pending the trial for seven youth matters. Otavion Miller, 19, argued guilty of aggravating hijacking with vehicles with a weapon before the punishment was received from judge Sophia Atcherson, according to judicial data.
The Lyft director, a 45-year-old man from Palatine, was in the 5200 block of South Green when Miller pointed a gun to him and asked him out of his car early on May 16, 2024, said prosecutors. The Chicago police officers were told that they were looking for three black men who wore face masks in a white Kia Forte, and they quickly saw a vehicle that matched the description, said a CPD report.
According to the report, a police helicopter unit has established the Kia, kept in mind from above and communicated his movements via radio to land units. The chopper team looked while Miller left the vehicle in gear and was saved in an alley, the report said. Officers arrested him in the neighborhood.
According to CPD, the police found a unloaded gun in the alley where Miller saved. It was reportedly equipped with an illegal aftermarket switch that could be burned automatically, such as a machine gun.
Officers also found a black ski mask, the victim’s credit card and the victim’s wallet in front of the house next to where Miller started running, the report said. The Lyft driver arrived on the spot and identified him as the person who pointed a gun to him and took his car.
The results of the seven things he had processed at the time of the hijacking are not available because youth records are protected from public assessment.
Van Miller is expected to be released in April 2028, after slightly less than half of his sentence, according to the state reports. The Steenswet gives a discount of 50% good behavior for most crimes, including hijacking vehicles. He also earned 385 days of credit in the prison of the province.
