Media Contact: Lt. Dave Shaffer | 217-403-7030 | [email protected]
On July 28, 2016, at approximately 7:46 PM, Champaign Police Officers responded to the Sprint Store located at 2706 N. Prospect Ave. for a reported armed robbery that had just occurred. Upon arrival, officers found that several customers and employees inside of the business had been tied up and restrained during the course of the robbery. One of these individuals was able to escape the restraints and contact 911. It was determined that two black male suspects, at least one of which was armed with a handgun, entered the store, restrained both customers and employees, and took property and cellular devices from both the business and individuals in the store.
During the on-scene investigation, officers processed and evaluated several sources of information and items of evidentiary interest. Throughout the investigation, a possible suspect vehicle was identified and the vehicle description was provided to area law enforcement agencies, to include the Illinois State Police.
At approximately 8:34 PM, the Illinois State Police stopped the suspect vehicle on Interstate 57 near Ashkum. On-scene investigation and consultation with the Champaign Police Department led to the arrest of two suspects after items from the robbery were located in the vehicle. The Illinois State Police transported both the suspects and vehicle to the Champaign Police Department and released them to Champaign Police Detectives.
The suspects in custody are identified as Jaevonte D. Williams, a 22 year-old-male from Kankakee and Randy B. Williams, a 27 year-old-male from Kankakee. Both suspects are being held at the Champaign County Correctional Center on preliminary charges of Armed Robbery.
This investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information relating to this incident is encouraged to contact the Champaign Police Department Investigations Division at 217-351-4545.
Information can also be provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers. Crime Stoppers calls are routed to a third-party national call center that receives the information, completes a tips information form, and passes the tip information to the appropriate law enforcement agency. Caller ID tracking is not utilized by Crime Stoppers, and conversations are not recorded.
Anonymous tips can be shared by phone at: 217-373-8477 (TIPS); online at www.373tips.com; or by texting “CCTIP” plus the crime information to 274637 (CRIMES). Crime Stoppers will pay a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person(s) responsible for this crime.