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Man Accused of Jumping Pizza Delivery Driver Turns Himself In

Elmhurst resident Asante McKinley faces charges of assault and theft.

A man accused of in April has turned himself in, according to a press release issued by Elmhurst Police Chief Dominic Panico on Wednesday.

An ongoing investigation led police to Asante R. McKinley, 18, of Elmhurst, who has been charged with theft from a person and assault.

At about 9:45 p.m. Saturday, April 14, employees of the Domino's Pizza at 1036 S. York Road took a pizza order for delivery to the 100 block of South Rex Boulevard. At about 10:17 p.m., as the driver attempted to deliver the pizzas, he was approached by a man in the driveway of the residence. The suspect struggled with the driver, then took the bag containing the pizzas and fled on foot.


Police said that about one week earlier, a similar incident occurred in Elmhurst involving the same Domino's location, but it was not reported at the time.

This is not McKinley's first encounter with law enforcement. According to public records, he pleaded guilty to charges of disorderly conduct and prowling in Elmhurst in 2010, and to possession of cannabis in Lombard in 2011.

McKinley turned himself in at DuPage County Jail July 30 for the most recent charges. He was released on $5,000 bond, and his next court date is Monday, Aug. 13.

Elmhurst Police are asking anyone with additional information on this case to contact Det. Paul Carney at 630-530-3050.

Patch reports on law enforcement activity using information provided by official agencies. Persons charged with a crime or issued a citation for violation of a local ordinance are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. If you or a family member are charged with a crime or cited for a violation and the charge or citation is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to contact karenc@patch.com and we will do follow-up reporting on the case.

Steven Bayne August 8, 2012 at 02:54 pm
So many of these cases seem hopeless. So many make the idea of rehabilitation an obvious absurdity. This appears to be a different sort of case. To be sure, there should be punishment but rehabilitation appears possible in cases, like this one, where there is a moral conscience in play.
Vincent Russell August 8, 2012 at 03:08 pm
Hello, Steven Bayne are you home? The kid is into pot so mugging pizza delivery guys late at night, not for money, but for pizza, would indicate a desperate attempt to cure a bad case of the "munchies." The kid needs drug rehab, nothing else.
Vincent Russell August 8, 2012 at 03:45 pm
Karen, why is it the police release a mug shot of an 18 year old kid, but don't release pictures of others? DUI arrests, for example. Seems discriminatory and biased.
Vincent Russell August 8, 2012 at 04:18 pm
Mr. Howard, Ms. Chadra is doing her job as a reporter, and she does a damn good job of it. This young man attacked a working person on the streets of Elmhurst. This IS NEWS and SHOULD be reported as Ms. Chadra has professionally done. Hopefully, his name in the blotter will lead him to conduct himself in a manner as proper gentlemen in society and a law abiding citizen, not some neighborhood thug attacking innocent people.
My question is why does the police limit who they report? Who makes this very important determination of what gets released? Don't we have a FIMA
Karen Chadra (Editor) August 8, 2012 at 04:23 pm
The Elmhurst police chief sent out a press release to all media this morning about this arrest along with the mugshot. This is usually the case when an arrest is made after an ongoing investigation. We don't receive mug shots for day-to-day reports of people arrested at the time of a crime, it's usually just when a crime has gone unresolved for awhile and an arrest is made. We haven't handled this any differently than any other release from the police chief regarding an arrest resulting from an ongoing investigation. In the eyes of the law, an 18-year-old is not a child. This is all a matter of public record, as will be any of his upcoming appearances in DuPage County courts.
Dave August 8, 2012 at 04:24 pm
You're joking, right?
Karen Chadra (Editor) August 8, 2012 at 04:25 pm
He has not been convicted of any crime. He is only charged.
Steven Bayne August 8, 2012 at 04:52 pm
Vincent: About half the country is "into pot." Big deal!
CPT. OBVIOUS August 8, 2012 at 05:19 pm
This "good kid" committed a premeditated strong arm robbery. It was not a spur of the moment type event, he made the decision to order food with the intent to physically harm the delivery driver. You obviously have some sort of connection to this man so please do take your bias and ignorant comments with you.
Karen Chadra (Editor) August 8, 2012 at 07:58 pm
For the record, Elmhurst Patch did not exist when this arrest was made. We launched in September 2010.
Lumpy August 8, 2012 at 08:03 pm
How about this take on the above article. The Elmhurst Police put in 6 month’s worth of investigation, gathered enough evidence to get an arrest warrant. The suspect felt the pressure enough to turn himself, without further incident. Even though some feel this is not worth reporting, and most people have forgotten about it, it shows all crime is taken seriously by this department.
That’s one for the good guys, keep up the good work.
Chris August 8, 2012 at 10:27 pm
People r innocent when the league is invokved
CPT. OBVIOUS August 8, 2012 at 11:23 pm
Not sure the relevance of hearing your life story, but it does say he turned himself in. I will take a friendly wager and say he will plead guilty and make a deal with the courts to avoid jail time.
Ralph August 9, 2012 at 07:25 pm
I would think aggravated assault, disorderly conduct and prowling would be grounds enough for a picture. "Discriminatory and bias" would be to NOT release a picture of this violent habitual predator. if you were attacked, like the person contributing and earning a living was, he would not appear as a KID. Jail this miscreant for a long time, it may just save a person's life.
CPT. OBVIOUS August 9, 2012 at 08:46 pm
UH WHY DID MY COMMENTS GET DELETED?
David Fletch August 10, 2012 at 01:47 am
this kid saved my little sisters life, she was being attacked and this anonymous person name asante mckinley was the one person who stood up for her and possibly saved her life. If you are going to tell me that he should be put in jail for stealing 2 large pizzas at the age of 18 then you are a ill informed and judging this individual, what gives you the right to judge him?
Karen Chadra (Editor) August 10, 2012 at 02:23 am
I did not delete them. I'm checking with our tech department for an audit trail for the comments on this story.
CPT. OBVIOUS August 10, 2012 at 05:52 pm
He is a criminal. The object he was stealing is irrelevant. This "Kid" knowingly planned a robbery which ended in the assault of someone who was on their job. What if the delivery driver was your son or daughter. You need to remove your feelings and bias from this and listen to the facts.
Andrew b August 10, 2012 at 07:26 pm
It is a sad world we live in when people make excuses for a criminal. I hope he goes to prison for this crime before he does something more serious.
CPT. OBVIOUS August 10, 2012 at 07:30 pm
Bob Howard, do you understand the purpose of a police blotter? Ms Chandra is only conveying the facts, not passing judgement.
Dave August 10, 2012 at 07:34 pm
He must have been charged as an adult for the prior offenses, otherwise the police would not have released that information. If the allegations are true, this guy mugged an innocent pizza delivery man trying to earn an honest living. Why aren't you incensed about that?
J. Siegel August 10, 2012 at 09:40 pm
How rude and ignorant is Mr. Bob Howard? I'm sorry for anyone who has to interact with him in our community. Next time, make a point or share an opinion.
Karen Chadra (Editor) August 10, 2012 at 10:21 pm
Response from Patch tech department: "It is likely that the 'root' comment (the comment that CPT. OBVIOUS replied to) got deleted. This, subsequently, deletes replies to the root."
Darlene Heslop August 11, 2012 at 12:49 am
mr. howard, i agree with your "ps"...thanks for your perspective... .
Billy August 13, 2012 at 08:36 pm
asante mckinley is not a terrible kid at all. He's made some poor decisions, and this particular one was very stupid of him, but he is a smart kid and cares about his friends and family alot. Putting him in jail is the worst solution to this problem as i can assure you he has already been scared straight by the consequences of his actions. The entire town has seen his picture and read of his crime and now he is looked upon as a hopeless criminal when really hes kid whose made some stupid decisions. He may need some help but putting him in prison is not the way for him to get it. Asante has alot of potential to be a good person and should not be givin up on that easily
Billy September 18, 2012 at 01:04 am
http://elmhurst.patch.com/articles/fbi-hillside-resident-s0-alleged-terrorist-plot-had-been-in-the-works-for-nearly-a-year << Is is interesting that there is no picture of this young man posted. Yet you somehow in your mind find it acceptable to post a picture and prior criminal offenses of Asante. From when he was a minor. Very interesting. Keep up the great journalism Karen your a real winner.

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