A Chicago man found guilty of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a toddler in Mundelein is scheduled for sentencing April 26, almost six months after his conviction.
Much of the delay was attributed to obtaining official records from the Department of Defense for Jose Reyes, who was honorably discharged from the military after serving in Afghanistan, according to defense attorney Eric Rinehart.
Rinehart said that information would be used in preparing for the sentencing hearing.
Judge Mark Levitt set the new sentencing date Tuesday in Lake County Circuit Court after a brief discussion with Rinehart and Assistant State’s Attorney Eric Kalata. Reyes had initially been scheduled for sentencing Jan. 19.
Reyes faces 24 to 120 years in prison after being convicted at the end of a bench trial before Levitt last fall of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a 3-year-old Mundelein girl.
In announcing the guilty verdict, Levitt said evidence and testimony during the trial of Reyes left no doubt in his mind that Reyes was guilty of the charges against him.
The prosecution’s case against Reyes included video of the assault, which was played in court, that police and prosecutors said Reyes took with his cell phone. When announcing his verdict, Levitt said that the video made clear that the “minor child was kidnapped, recorded and sexually assaulted.”
Levitt also called the physical evidence against Reyes, such as DNA matches, “abundant,” the forensics in the case “pristine” and the Mundelein police investigation that led to Reyes quick, but “more importantly, careful.”
Reyes was formally convicted of aggravated kidnapping, predatory criminal sexual assault and possession and production of child pornography following the trial that ran intermittently between Oct. 17 and Oct. 28 of last year. Levitt then announced his verdict Nov. 3.
Reyes opted for a bench trial before Levitt over a jury trial.
Police and prosecutors said Reyes abducted the child from in front of her Mundelein apartment complex on Sept. 30, 2013, took her in his car to another location and sexually assaulted her.
He then returned her to the parking lot of the complex less than an hour later, authorities said.
Among the witnesses at the trial was one of the girl’s sisters, who described the abduction, parts of which were captured on surveillance video.
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