Andrews gets 35 years for Cristaudo’s death

The man who robbed the Midwest Cash pawnshop and led police on a chase through Carbondale in a vehicle that crashed, killing a hostage and a gunman, will spend the next 35 years in prison.

Christopher M. Andrews, 21, plead guilty Thursday to first-degree murder of Midwest Cash manager Lucia Cristaudo as part of a negotiated plea with Jackson County State’s Attorney Mike Wepsiec. As part of Illinois’ truth in sentencing, Andrews must serve the entire 35-year sentence. He won’t be eligible for parole until 2036.

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Carbondale residents were shocked in March 2001 when news of the Midwest Cash robbery and Cristuado’s death first broke. Andrews and Robert Custon, armed with a handgun, stormed into the pawnshop and demanded money, jewelry and guns from Cristaudo. Police cornered the gunmen in the pawnshop, and Custon took Cristaudo hostage, using her as a human shield in order to make it to a getaway vehicle in the store’s parking lot.

Witnesses said Cristaudo volunteered herself as a hostage when Custon tried to use customers in the store as hostages.

Meanwhile, behind the wheel, Andrews led police on a chase through Carbondale that ended when the getaway vehicle careened off Lincoln Drive and crashed into a tree. Custon and Cristaudo were both killed, and police arrested Andrews on the scene.

Contacted Friday, Wepsiec said the case built against Andrews by the Carbondale Police Department was near perfect and that obtaining a conviction at trial wouldn’t have been too difficult. However, Wepsiec recognized that Cristaudo’s family wasn’t looking forward to a trial that rehashed all the details of her kidnapping and death.

I know both the Cristaudo and Cupp family, the people who owned Midwest Cash, are happy to have this matter behind them, Wepsiec said. A trial is a very arduous ordeal for people. It resurrects old feeling and old wounds.

Andrews’ conviction Thursday wraps up the final chapter of prosecution of the Midwest Cash defendants. Wepsiec previously obtained convictions for Omar Moore and Chamille Edmonds, both of whom were arrested in connection with the robbery.

Moore was seen leaving Midwest Cash after police arrived at the pawnshop in the middle of the robbery. He was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Edmonds was arrested for having knowledge of the robbery. She pleaded guilty to armed robbery and was sentenced to five years in prison.

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Moore is in the process of appealing his conviction. For Andrews, that is an opportunity he will not have. Part of his plea bargain provided that all lines of appeal were eliminated when he accepted the deal. Wepsiec said he knows all three defendants would probably do things differently if they could undo their actions. He said 35 years in prison won’t even begin to compensate Cristaudo’s family for its loss.

It’s a sad situation. Whether he got one year or 1,000, it would never undo the terrible tragedy that happened that day, Wepsiec said.

Brett Nauman can be reached at [email protected]