There’s a ‘special place in hell’ for man convicted of sexual assault in Joliet: prosecutor

A Joliet man has been convicted of sexually assaulting a teenage girl in his southwest suburban home.

Chandel Dirkans, 37, on Friday was found guilty on all 17 counts in connection to the 2015 attack on a then-16-year-old girl, according to the Will County state’s attorney’s office.

The sexual assault happened Nov. 5, 2015 at Dirkans’ home while its other occupants were at work, prosecutors said.

Dirkans placed the girl in the chokehold and dragged her to an upstairs bedroom, where she lost consciousness, prosecutors said. He told her, “You’re either going to f—- me or I’m going to kill you,” according to prosecutors, who said he was armed with a knife during the sexual assault.

After three hours, he forced her into a vehicle and drove her around before coming back to the home, prosecutors said. In the driveway, Dirkans talked about killing her as they sat parked in the driveway, prosecutors said. He released her from the vehicle, and later surrendered to police after an hours-long standoff in which he had barricaded himself in the home.

“There is a special place in Hell reserved for Chandel Dirkans...,” State’s Attorney James Glasgow said.

“This demonic assault violated every tenet of human decency when he repeatedly brutalized this young teenage girl on every level of her home. Just as this young woman must live with the effects of his cruel and inhuman conduct for the rest of her life, Dirkans should spend his days behind the cold steel bars of a prison cell for his barbaric and savage conduct,” Glasgow said.

Dirkans was convicted Friday of 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault, five counts of criminal sexual assault, one count of aggravated unlawful restraint and one count of aggravated domestic battery, prosecutors said.

During the time of the assaults, Dirkans was on parole for a 2009 conviction of residential burglary, prosecutors said. He also had previous convictions for unlawful use or possession of a weapon by a felon, robbery and burglary.

Prosecutors said Dirkans may face up to 140 years in prison. The sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.

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