Elgin man guilty of 2023 violent attack, kidnapping of woman

An Elgin man has been found guilty of kidnapping and violently attacking a woman in March 2023, according to a news release from Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser.

Darnell L. Rhodes, 34, of the 1200 block of Fleetwood Drive, Elgin, was found guilty of aggravated kidnapping and inflicting great bodily harm, a Class X felony, according to the release.

He faces between six to 30 years in prison.

Assistant state’s attorneys Mark Stajdohar and Matthew Picton said in court that between March 13 and 14, 2023, Rhodes and codefendants Roger A. Heaps and Lloyd D. Hayes Jr. kidnapped and violently assaulted a woman they knew.

“This case involved one of the ugliest unprovoked attacks I have seen in 25 years as a prosecutor,” Stajdohar said in the release. “All three of these men deserve to be in prison because of their heinous actions, and our communities are safer with them off the streets. The victim, who is still recovering from the lasting impact of her injuries, has demonstrated remarkable courage and resilience each day as she works to rebuild her life. I hope that she and her family can find some measure of relief in this verdict.”

The defendants threatened the woman with a knife and drove her to one of their residences, where they bound her with electrical cords, stabbed and physically beat her, according to the release.

The woman suffered fractures to her left rib and right pinky finger, one stab wound to her right upper leg, three stab wounds to her left leg, bruises and trauma to her left forearm. She also suffered blunt force injuries to her head and face, leaving both eyes swollen shut, according to the release.

Rhodes is in custody at the Kane County jail. Judge John Barsanti set Rhodes’s sentencing hearing for Sept. 25 at the Kane County Judicial Center, according to the release.

Heaps pleaded guilty to armed violence, a Class X Felony, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison in January 2024.

Hayes Jr. is charged with 11 felony counts, including attempted murder, armed violence and aggravated kidnapping. His case is pending a Sept. 12 status hearing in Kane County, according to the release.

Stajdohar thanked victim advocates Sheila Gray and Linda Hagemann and Elgin Police Department detectives Andrew Houghton and David Lackey for their work on the case.