A Gary man was sentenced to 10 years Friday after admitting he robbed a sex worker at gunpoint of just under $60.

Deandre Gardner, 28, pleaded guilty in November to armed robbery.

In exchange for his plea, prosecutors dropped rape, criminal confinement and intimidation charges.

Most of Friday’s hearing was devoted to which case his jail credit time would apply to. He had his probation revoked on an earlier case, which used up the bulk of it.

In court, he apologized for his actions.

Gary Police wrote the incident happened April 20, 2024, on a top-floor apartment in the 2500 block of Connecticut Street, documents state.

A Chicago Police officer notified Gary Police after meeting the victim at Roseland Community Hospital.

The victim told police she agreed to meet a man for a “QV” (quick visit) via a Text Now app for $150. He sent her his photo and address.

A different man met her at the apartment. She had to “play it cool” to not “arouse suspicion” and wanted to get an Uber out of there.

The upstairs apartment looked like a filthy “trap house” filled with garbage, debris and broken glass. He said to excuse the place; she raised her eyebrows.

“(Expletive) that, give me what you got,” he told her, according to the charging documents.

The woman thought it was a joke. He pulled a gun.

“Who are you talking to,” he asked.

The man grabbed her purse, then searched it for money or stuff to steal.

“You moving too much, stay still. Be quiet,” he told her.

The woman was “shaking,” but complied, telling him she wasn’t from the area. She cried and told him she “just wanted to leave and see her children.”

Holding a gun to her head, he forced her to transfer “her last $38” on a cash app, as well as taking $21 from her purse, according to the charges.

mcolias@post-trib.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/20/gary-man-sentenced-to-10-years-for-robbing-sex-worker/