Authorities said Brewer and three co-defendants planned Guerrero’s murder for a month before luring him to the West Chicago Public Library, where he was ambushed, strangled, stabbed and beaten on Aug. 14, 2018.
A DuPage County judge sentenced Tia Brewer, a former Wheaton resident, to 40 years in prison for her involvement in the 2018 murder of 18-year-old Luis Guerrero.
Brewer, who was 16 at the time, pleaded guilty in November to first-degree murder and aggravated kidnapping.
Guerrero was then taken to a fire pit located on Joliet Street, where prosecutors said he begged to be taken to the hospital while he was continuously stabbed and beaten.
At some point, while Guerrero was unconscious, gasoline was poured on him before he was lit on fire. Guerrero then got up and tried to run away, but was beaten and stabbed some more before being dragged back to the fire pit and set on fire again.
Brewer is the third defendant to be sentenced in the case.
Co-defendants Jesus Jurado-Correa and Saul Ruiz pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit First-Degree Murder and received prison terms of 15 and 10 years, respectively, in exchange for their cooperation in the case.
Francisco Alvarado, who also pleaded guilty to murder and kidnapping, is set to appear in court again this month.
Prosecutors sought a life sentence for Brewer, citing the brutality of the crime. She was given 34 years for murder, which she must serve in full, and six years for aggravated kidnapping, to be served at 85%.
DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin called the case one of the most disturbing he had encountered in nearly four decades.
“The unconscionable degree of depravity exhibited by Tia Brewer and her co-defendants in this case as they strangled, beat, stabbed and lit on fire Luis Guerrero is beyond comprehension,” Berlin said.
“In my thirty-seven years as a prosecutor, I would be hard-pressed to recall such a vicious, gruesome murder of an innocent man. Guilty verdicts and lengthy prison sentences however, cannot erase the pain and heartbreak caused by Ms. Brewer and her co-defendants. I wish Luis Guerrero’s family and friends strength as they continue their lives with just his memory to see them through.”
