Elgin man sentenced after woman was kidnapped, stabbed and beaten

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Darnell Rhodes | Kane County State's Attorney's Office

An Elgin man convicted of aggravated kidnapping was sentenced to 15 years in prison after prosecutors said he and two other men kidnapped and violently assaulted a woman they knew in 2023.

What we know:

Darnell L. Rhodes, 35, was convicted by a jury Aug. 13, 2025, of aggravated kidnapping inflicting great bodily harm. He was sentenced to 15 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, according to the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors said the kidnapping happened between March 13 and March 14, 2023. Rhodes, codefendant Roger A. Heaps and another man allegedly threatened the woman with a knife, drove her to one of their residences and confined her by binding her with electrical cords.

The victim was also stabbed in both legs and physically beaten, prosecutors said.

She suffered a nondisplaced fracture of her left rib, a fractured right pinky finger, one stab wound to her right upper leg and three stab wounds to her left leg. She also suffered bruises, trauma to her left forearm and blunt-force injuries to her head and face, leaving both eyes swollen shut, according to prosecutors.

Assistant State’s Attorneys Mark Stajdohar and Matthew Picton presented the facts during court proceedings.

Under Illinois law, Rhodes must serve at least 85% of his sentence. He will receive credit for 1,283 days he has already served in the Kane County jail.

What they're saying:

Stajdohar praised the victim for attending the trial and surviving the attack.

"The victim in this case showed courage in attending this trial and incredible toughness in surviving that night," Stajdohar said. "The Office of the Kane County State’s Attorney and all of its members stand with this victim."