CHAMPAIGN, IL (Chambana Today) – A 26-year-old Champaign man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for sexually assaulting a woman in two separate incidents that occurred in early 2024.
Eugene Joiner received consecutive nine-year sentences for two counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault following his conviction earlier this year. The sentencing was handed down Tuesday by Judge Randall B. Rosenbaum in Champaign County Circuit Court.
According to Champaign County State’s Attorney Julia Rietz, the crimes stem from an incident on March 17, 2024, when Joiner forced a female victim to perform sexual acts in a vacant residence on the 1300 block of Joanne Lane around 3 a.m. The victim told police she had been threatened with a gun, though a jury later acquitted Joiner of that charge.
The victim reported another threat from Joiner on April 18, 2024. Police located Joiner in the area described by the victim and arrested him shortly afterward.
Initially denying any connection to the victim, Joiner later claimed the interaction had been consensual. A jury found him guilty of the sexual assaults on January 9, 2025.
Joiner will serve his sentences in the Illinois Department of Corrections and has been credited with 440 days already served in custody.