32 years for ‘brutal’ sexual assault of woman at West Town bus stop

A Chicago man was sentenced late Wednesday to 32 years in prison for the 2013 sexual assault and robbery of a 21-year-old woman who was waiting at a CTA bus stop in West Town.

Michael Campbell, now 29, pleaded guilty to one count each of aggravated criminal sexual assault and aggravated kidnapping, and was sentenced by Cook County Judge Charles Burns, according to the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.

Campbell was at a CTA stop in the 1000 block of North Western about 5 a.m. on July 8, 2013, when he tried to start a conversation with the woman, who was on her way home from work, a statement from prosecutors said.

As the victim took a seat on a bench inside the bus shelter, Campbell grabbed her face and slammed her head against a wall. He then punched her face multiple times before dragging her to a nearby gangway, prosecutors said.

Campbell then got on top of the woman, struck her in the head and slammed her face against a brick wall before sexually assaulting her, prosecutors said.

When the woman began to scream for help and begged him to stop, Campbell responded, “Stop screaming. I have a gun and I will kill you.”

Campbell later ran away with the woman’s bag, but a witness saw him running and removing a green T-shirt, which was recovered by police. Investigators also obtained video surveillance from a nearby gas station that showed Campbell before the attack, the state’s attorney’s office said.

Police released his image to the public and, three days later, Campbell was taken into custody. The victim identified him in a police lineup and his DNA matched that found on the T-shirt, the state’s attorney’s office said.