Former McHenry man sentenced to 4.5 years in prison for cutting woman’s face with knife

A former McHenry man accused of cutting a woman’s face with a knife pleaded guilty to aggravated domestic battery Friday and was sentenced to 4½ years in prison.

Rogelio Cantu Jr., 54, who has since moved to Zion, will be on mandatory supervised release for four years after completing his prison term, of which he must serve 85%, McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt said.

He will receive credit for 13 days spent in the county jail.

Cantu was scheduled to be sentenced Thursday, but plans changed after he was found to be drunk. Upon suspicion that he was intoxicated, Gerhardt ordered him to submit to a drug and alcohol screen.

The screen showed that he was at more than twice the legal limit for driving. Gerhardt held him in contempt of court, and he was immediately taken into custody at the county jail.

On Friday, he appeared before the judge in orange jail-issued clothing and pleaded guilty as part of a plea deal to aggravated domestic battery, a Class 2 felony. The charge can carry a prison term of three to seven years and also is probational.

Rogelio apologized to Gerhardt for being drunk Thursday and acknowledged that it was disrespectful. His attorney, Patrick Brady, said Rogelio struggles with depression and alcoholism and is “ashamed and remorseful” for coming to court drunk.

In exchange for the guilty plea, additional counts of aggravated battery, domestic battery and interfering with the reporting of domestic violence were dismissed, according to McHenry County court records.

Rogelio was accused of swinging a knife at a woman he knew, cutting her face and preventing her from calling 911 on Jan. 8, 2022, records show.

Cantu was arrested after the McHenry Police Department responded about 9 p.m. that day to a home in the 1900 block of Concord Drive for a reported stabbing incident, according to a news release.

The woman told police the man struck her in the face with a knife, police said at the time of his arrest.

She was able to leave the home and yell for help, and neighbors came to help and called 911, according to the release.

The woman was taken to Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital with an injury that was not life-threatening and released a few hours later, according to the release.

Assistant State’s Attorney Brian Miller said the terms of the sentence were “reached after extensive consultation with the victim,” and she was in agreement with it.

“This is what she wishes to happen,” Miller said.