South Florida federal jury convicted three men- Kejuan Brandon Campbell, Antonio Charles James Jr., and Dionte Alexander-Wilcox. They all received charges for kidnapping, conspiracy to kidnap, bank robbery, and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence.
The charges originate from an incident that took place in October 2020 when the three defendants broke into a couple’s home, assaulted the husband, and forced both of them to lie on the floor at gunpoint.
The defendants ransacked the home, took the couple’s phones, wallet, and tried to transfer $20,000 using the wife’s phone. However, the transwer was unsuccessful. Campbell then forced the wife to go with him to multiple stores to try to cash $20,000 in checks while the other two defendants held the husband at gunpoint.
The defendants then spent the night at the couple’s home, cooked, drank alcohol, and smoked marijuana. They did not allow the couple to speak to each other and kept a gun pointed at them.
Alexander-Wilcox raped the wife in a bedroom. The next morning, Campbell forced her to withdraw $20,000 from ATMs. After returning home, the defendants filled suitcases with the couple’s jewelry and items on which the defendants might have left their DNA.
The defendants threatened to kill the couple if they called the police before they locked them in a bathroom. They then took their house key and left with the cash that they stole.
The evidence presented in court revealed the defendants’ motive to commit a home invasion against the couple. They committed this cruel crime because husband’s estranged nephew stole $20,000 from Campbell earlier that day.
The defendants face between 15 years and life in federal prison, and U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn will sentence them in Fort Lauderdale federal court on April 27, 2023.