Milwaukee boy kidnapped near 61st and Hustis, man charged in court

MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee man accused of kidnapping a 7-year-old boy on the city's north side made his initial appearance in court on Friday. His bond was set at $100,000.

Charges filed

In Court:

Court filings show 25-year-old Corey Williams is charged with kidnapping, taking hostages and contributing to the delinquency of a child – all felonies, and all as a party to a crime.

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"The evidence against you is you – you pretty much admitted to everything," Court Commissioner Barry Phillips said during Williams' initial appearance. "Your version of the events was this was supposed to be the robbery of an alleged drug dealer, and when that didn't work out, the plan switched."

Williams' defense attorney argued the crime was not his choice.

"He gave a full confession. He spoke about the other individuals who were there, indicated that he did not have the intent to kidnap this child," said Attorney Kendra Schmeling. "He was essentially the driver of the vehicle."

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"As the driver, you could have easily said, ‘Don’t take that kid, don't bring that kid in this car.' You didn't do that," Phillips said.

The Milwaukee Police Department said, in addition to Williams, a 14-year-old boy and 38-year-old man were arrested. Criminal charges will be referred to the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office. No other suspects are being sought at this time.

Milwaukee boy kidnapped

The backstory:

According to a criminal complaint, a white Jeep SUV drove in front of a home near 61st and Hustis as the 7-year-old was riding his bike on July 11. The boy's father said he saw people jump out of the Jeep with guns and grab his son, put him in the SUV and drive away.

Surveillance video showed the boy was riding his bike when the Jeep turned and blocked the driveway of the home around 7:10 p.m. Two people then got out, court filings said. One person chased the dad inside while the other chased after the boy, grabbed him and carried him to the Jeep. The Jeep then took off after everyone was in the vehicle.

The boy was found the next day in the upper unit of a duplex near 39th and Lloyd. Prosecutors said Williams was found hiding in the attic, and court filings said he had a pill – which tested positive for methamphetamine – in his pocket.

According to the complaint, the boy told police he was at his dad's house when a man chased him, grabbed him and took him. He said he was in a car with three unknown men, and they drove to the house where police found him. When they got to the house, he went inside with the man who drove the car and "heard the man talking to his mom." 

Court filings said the boy "teared up" during the interview with police and said he heard his mom say that "she was going to come and pick him up but she never came." He was released to Child Protective Services. 

The boy later identified Williams from a photo as the man who drove the Jeep, per the complaint.

In custody

What they're saying:

In an interview with detectives, the complaint states Williams said he and others planned to rob the boy's mother.

According to court filings, he claimed the mother is a "well-known drug dealer and flaunted money and that he had seen her with bricks of drugs during FaceTime calls." He said, on the day they took the boy, he and another person had guns and planned to commit the robbery.

The plan was to go to the mother's home and rob her at gunpoint, Williams said, per the complaint. They drove there and waited but never saw the woman, and someone in the crew suggested they rob the boy's father instead. They then drove to the area of 61st and Hustis and saw the boy and his father outside.

Williams said two people got out of the Jeep with guns, according to court filings. One of those people grabbed the boy, and they sped away once everyone was back in the Jeep. He said they got into an argument as they drove over why they took the boy. He said the plan then changed, and one of the people he was with contacted the mother – demanding $100,000 and jewelry – in exchange for the boy. They were going to meet at a park.

Prosecutors said Williams told police he was "originally promised" $10,000 for his role in the robbery, but "demanded more" once the boy was taken. He said the mother never showed up for their meeting and, once they became aware of the Amber Alert, he said the other two people left him with the boy at the home near 39th and Lloyd.

Dig deeper:

Detectives arrested another person, who is not named in the complaint filed against Williams but is identified as one of the two armed people involved in the kidnapping. Detectives searched that person's home and found a handgun under a couch cushion. There were also phone calls in which that person spoke to people about his plan to rob the mother.

Court filings said the mother, 25-year-old Shavon Williams, was uncooperative and left the scene as detectives were looking for her son. It went on to say her actions "impeded the police investigation…and slowed investigator efforts to quickly and safely locate and recover (the boy) from his abductors."

Public records show Shavon Williams is being held in the Milwaukee County Jail. The district attorney's office told FOX6 News that criminal charges are pending.

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