By Chicago Times Magazine –
December 16, 2025
A federal jury on Monday convicted LaBar Spann, 47, a leader of the Four Corner Hustlers street gang, finding him guilty on all counts for his role in a criminal organization that prosecutors say terrorized the city’s West Side for roughly two decades.
After a six‑week trial in U.S. District Court in Chicago, the jury returned guilty verdicts on four counts, including racketeering conspiracy, two murders in aid of racketeering, and extortion. Prosecutors said the evidence showed Spann participated in a conspiracy that involved premeditated killings, robberies, extortions, witness tampering, and drug trafficking.
The jury found Spann responsible for four murders carried out as part of the conspiracy: Maximillion McDaniel on July 25, 2000; George King on April 8, 2003; Willie Woods on April 17, 2003; and Rudy Rangel on June 4, 2003. Testimony at trial included statements from fellow gang members, eyewitnesses, responding law enforcement officers, and expert witnesses who analyzed forensic and other evidence.
Spann faces a mandatory sentence of life in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin set sentencing for April 20, 2026. The government was represented at trial by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meghan C. Morrissey, Michelle J. Parthum, and Emily C.R. Vermylen.
The verdicts were announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent‑in‑Charge of the FBI’s Chicago Field Office; Christopher Amon, Special Agent‑in‑Charge of the ATF’s Chicago Field Division; and Larry Snelling, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. Federal officials credited a broad, multiagency effort that included assistance from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Illinois Secretary of State Police Department, Illinois Department of Corrections, Illinois State Police, Cook County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.
According to evidence presented at trial, the Four Corner Hustlers operated primarily in West Garfield Park and North Lawndale on the West Side, and in the former LeClaire Courts public housing development on the Southwest Side. Prosecutors said the gang ran a drug‑trafficking enterprise, robbed and extorted rival dealers, and used violence and intimidation to prevent victims and witnesses from cooperating with law enforcement.
Spann was indicted in 2017 along with eight other members of the Four Corner Hustlers and two additional defendants. All defendants named in that indictment have now been convicted.
