'L' Stop Death Suspect Charged In Another iPhone Robbery
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The teen charged with pushing a 68-year-old woman to her death at the Fullerton Avenue 'L' stop earlier this year is now charged in another robbery.
As WBBM Newsradio's Lisa Fielding reports, Prince Watson, 17, was charged earlier this week with a new count of robbery, for allegedly stealing an iPhone from someone at the Harrison CTA Red Line subway stop on Sept. 22, 2010, police said.
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Watson is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Sally Katona-King on March 29, the day after he allegedly pushed Katona-King down a flight of stairs at the Fullerton stop, as he fled after robbing another woman of her iPhone.
Watson has been held in a juvenile facility since he pleaded guilty to a May 15 robbery of an iPhone on the Red Line stop at Clark and Division. In that robbery, the victim chased down Watson and police arrested him, officials said. He received a four-year sentence.
Watson is also charged with another robbery of an iPhone on April 17 on the Sedgwick station platform at Brown Line, prosecutors said.
At his bond hearing last month in the murder case, prosecutors said Watson admitted to police he stole the iPhone and "he bumped into two ladies who were in his way," prosecutors said.
He allegedly said he heard screams but didn't turn around because he didn't want anyone to see his face, prosecutors said.
He later sold the iPhone for $350 to $400, prosecutors said.
Police said they are investigating if Watson was involved in other iPhone thefts. There are more than 30 robberies of electronic devices on CTA trains every month in the Belmont Area, Detective Joe Agosta said. Most of the thefts involve iPhones, which sell for about $300 on the black market.
Katona-King, 68, worked at First Lutheran Church in Logan Square, where she cooked for the homeless and was the church treasurer.
The Fullerton 'L' stop, which serves the Brown, Red and Purple lines is the primary stop for the busy Lincoln Park neighborhood and DePaul University campus. Police had been passing out fliers at the station since the time of the deadly incident.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
