Man charged with sexually assaulting woman after carrying her unconscious into downtown hotel: prosecutors
Alleged Sexual Assault and Kidnapping Incident in Downtown Chicago
A 29-year-old man, Mohammed Ahmad, has been accused by prosecutors of carrying an unconscious woman into a downtown hotel where he sexually assaulted her before she woke up with no memory of the events that transpired.
The incident took place on the night of January 27, 2024, when the woman was drinking with friends at The Hangge-Uppe bar on 14 West Elm Street and met Ahmad Mohammed, according to prosecutors. The woman recalled going to the bathroom at some point but could not remember anything after that.
Prosecutors detailed a video during Mohammed’s detention hearing, showing him carrying the woman out of the bar and dropping her on her head. He then allegedly drove her to the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel at 221 North Columbus Drive, where he left her in the car while he checked in alone. Mohammed reportedly carried the unconscious woman into the hotel through a hallway leading to the parking garage.
Security footage at the hotel captured Mohammed struggling to carry the limp woman into an elevator and taking her to a room on the 17th floor, as described by Assistant State’s Attorney Mike Pekara.
The woman woke up the next morning in a room she did not recognize, with no clothes on, a headache, blood on her face, and a laceration on the bridge of her nose. Mohammed allegedly told her she had fallen outside the bar, but when he left to get her a phone charger, she made her way to the lobby for help.
Biological evidence was collected for DNA testing at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where DNA from a bite mark on the woman’s private area implicated Mohammed as a contributor.
Mohammed’s attorney disputed the state’s account, claiming that the woman willingly left with him and sustained a head injury when he dropped her in a flirtatious manner. However, Judge James Costello rejected arguments for electronic monitoring, citing the deliberate and dangerous nature of the alleged kidnapping.
Mohammed faces charges of aggravated criminal sexual assault, aggravated kidnapping, and causing bodily harm during the commission of another felony.
This article is based on court records and official transcripts of the detention hearings obtained with the support of our readers.
