CHICAGO (CBS) — An urgent search is underway for a 17-year-old boy with a history of gun and carjacking.
The teen escaped from custody and a warrant was issued for his arrest Wednesday evening. He had a difficult childhood and was a foster child in the care of the Department of Children and Family Services.
At Midway International Airport, the teen stepped off the plane at 5:17 p.m. Tuesday, fleeing his co-workers. The troubled 17-year-old has been moved through the DCFS system since he was 10 and has served time in a juvenile courtroom for repeated crimes, including an armed carjacking.
Now he’s on the run.
CBS News Chicago revealed that the teen was arrested several times in 2023, on four charges of aggravated battery, seven charges of aggravated vehicle theft using a weapon, and another case involving multiple charges of unlawful use of a weapon.
In July, just three months ago, the teenager discovered his fate, his punishment: probation. He was sent by DCFS to a secure residential treatment center, the Brooksville Youth Academy in Florida.
But the teen had more problems in Florida. It was all laid out in a court hearing Wednesday and in documents.
The Florida facility told DCFS to take him back to Illinois because he was part of a riot at Brooksville Youth Academy and was arrested again.
The Florida facility told DCFS that the teen needed “a more secure placement.”
The Brooksville arrest could have been a probation violation, but the Cook County Prosecutor’s Office declined to issue one.
So instead of sending the police to get him back, DCFS had to send caseworkers from Guardian Angel Community Services to Florida and back. Once the plane landed, the teen ran from Midway employees.
This shouldn’t have been a surprise. In a court document, a DCFS worker predicted the teen would flee — and so did the judge who heard the case.
Even the teen himself said he would run away.
The court documents also said the teen was likely about to be placed in a shelter, despite the secure facility saying he should be placed somewhere even safer.
CBS News Chicago has not yet heard from Guardian Angels Community Services.
The Cook County Prosecutor’s Office says it does not comment on juvenile cases.
Because the teen is a minor, no further details are available to share.
Dave Savini
