Woman pleads guilty to Downers Grove robbery

A Darien woman has pleaded guilty to robbing a woman five years ago in Downers Grove as part of what prosecutors back then called a mini crime spree.

Rose Medrano, 31, pleaded to one count of aggravated robbery — indicating a dangerous weapon or firearm, on Jan. 3, according to DuPage County court records.

She accepted a sentence of 4¾ years in prison and must serve at least 50% before being eligible for parole.

Medrano received credit for the little more than six months she spent in the DuPage County jail before posting bond. She will surrender herself to custody on Feb. 6.

She was one of three people accused of breaking into homes in Downers Grove and Woodridge on Dec. 5, 2019.

Medrano, Darion Yates, 25, of Bolingbrook, and Tyler Sample, 25, of Peoria, were charged with home invasion, aggravated robbery, robbery and residential burglary.

Bail was denied for Sample and Yates.

Woodridge police were called around 9:40 p.m. by a woman who said she was upstairs in bed when she heard a loud noise downstairs. When she investigated, she encountered Samples and Yates. Prosecutors said they threatened to return to the home and kill her if she didn’t do what they said. The men took a gold watch, wallet and laptop computer.

Less than an hour later, Downers Grove police responded to an apartment whose three residents told them a woman identified as Medrano knocked on the door asking to use a telephone.

After the residents let her in, Sample and Yates forced their way in, claiming they had a gun, according to prosecutors. Prosecutors said Sample punched one of them in the face. The trio stole cellphones and debit and credit cards, according to the charges.

Yates pleaded guilty in September 2021 to home invasion and was sentenced to 13 years in prison. He is serving that sentence at the same time as a two-year sentence for a Grundy County conviction for possession of a firearm with a defaced serial number.

Sample pleaded guilty in March 2021 to home invasion and was sentenced to 21 years in prison.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20250108/crime/woman-pleads-guilty-to-downers-grove-robbery/