Candice Jones was the “mastermind” behind murdering Michael Armendariz, prosecutors said. (Mug shot: DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office)
Jurors convicted a woman of helping her son and his girlfriend murder and rob the girlfriend’s childhood friend, the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office in Illinois announced on Friday.
Candice Jones, 43, faces 75 years in prison for murder and armed robbery, they said.
Prosecutors have called her the “mastermind” behind killing Michael Armendariz, 20, according to The Chicago Tribune. Cassandra Green, 26, then the girlfriend of Jones’ son Ernest Collins, 27, had shown them pictures from social media of the victim posing with large amounts of cash and drugs, authorities reportedly said.
According to prosecutors, Jones gave her son the gun.
“You’re going to do this,” she said.
Green lured out Armendariz, her childhood friend, with a Snapchat message the night of Jan. 14, 2019. She picked him up in an SUV, where Collins was hiding in the back.
“Green then drove out of the parking lot with Armendariz in the vehicle,” prosecutors said. “Approximately five minutes later, Collins emerged from hiding in the back of the Explorer and shot Armendariz twice in the back of the head. The duo then traveled to Jones’ residence in Chicago and, with Jones’ help, placed Armendariz’s body in a garbage can and then put the garbage can in Jones’ garage. At some point in time, the garbage can was moved to the garage of the vacant house next to Jones’ home.”
Taking the victim’s apartment keys, Collins and Green burglarized the residence the day after the murder.
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Ernest Collins and Cassandra Green carried out the murder of Michael Armendariz, authorities said. (Mug shots: DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office)
Armendariz’s body was found several months later.
Jones threatened to kill Green and her mother if Green ever stepped forward about the killing, prosecutors reportedly said.
But investigators reportedly tracked down Green through social media and records of the SUV that Armendariz entered that night — she had been previously pulled over in the vehicle by police. Green pleaded guilty on Aug. 19, 2022, to a count of armed robbery with a firearm in exchange for cooperating. She is scheduled for a hearing to take place Nov. 13.
Jones is scheduled for court on Dec. 18 regarding to return of her pre-sentence report and filing of post-trial motions, prosecutors said.
As for Collins, he was convicted last month of first-degree murder and armed robbery. He faces up to life in prison and is scheduled for a hearing to occur Nov. 29.
“This evening, a jury found Candice Jones, the last of three defendants charged in the murder of Michael Armendariz, guilty of first-degree murder,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said Friday. “Guilty verdicts, however, cannot bring Michael back to those who loved him. The diabolical plot devised by Candice Jones, Ernest Collins and Cassandra Green, and the execution of that plot, left a void in the lives of Michael’s surviving family and friends that will never be filled. I wish them strength as they continue their lives, having replaced Michael’s presence with just his memory. I thank Judge Reidy for ensuring a fair trial for both sides as well as the jury for their service. I also thank Assistant State’s Attorneys Helen Kapas, Amanda Meindl and Michael Paup for their efforts in holding Candice Jones, Ernest Collins and Cassandra Green responsible for their roles in the murder of Michael Armendariz.”
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