Police investigators in the Chicago area say they’ve nabbed a third suspect in a 2014 home invasion in which a collector was beaten in his home and robbed of more than $150,000 worth of sports cards.
Kristopher Muzzall, 27, is accused of the violent robbery, which involved the victim being beaten, hogtied and threatened during the break-in, which occurred August 27, 2014. Muzzall is being held at Cook County jail on $200,000 bail.
Twenty-year-old Martrell Robinson of Chicago has already pleaded guilty for his part in the robbery and just began serving a nine-year prison sentence last month.
The Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney says Robinson hit the collector in the head with a gun, kicked him, pulled a pillowcase over his head and tied his hands together. The two men became more violent once safes holding Michael Jordan and other sports cards became difficult to open. Eventually, they stole more than 400 cards along with the homeowner’s driver’s license, passports and family social security numbers and fled in the collector’s car. The victim was tied up in a bathtub with water running. Before leaving, investigators say they threatened to kill the collector and his family if he told anyone.
According to a story in the Arlington Daily Herald, phone records of calls made during the robbery led to Muzzall’s arrest and police say his DNA sample matched material found on the victim’s shirt.
A third man, 26-year-old Steven Chung is facing charges in the same robbery. They say Chung knew about the victim and his card collection.
After the robbery, prosecutors say the three men—and a fourth person—took off in an attempt to sell the stolen cards at shops in Ohio and Indiana. Some of the cards turned up online. A Lima, Ohio shop owner helped identify Robinson as one of the suspects.
Muzzall is due back in court next month.
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