CHICAGO (WLS) — On Tuesday, none of the individuals who spoke to ABC7 were willing to appear on camera, reflecting the profound impact the shooting had on the local community.
While many details remain unclear, including whether the shooting was intentional, witnesses reported that the young victim seemed to be heading to school.
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Scattered across the intersection of South Throop and West 50th Streets in the Back of the Yards area were over 80 evidence markers, marking the tragic spot where a 17-year-old was fatally shot.
At least three assailants emerged from a black Jeep and opened fire around 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, injuring two additional people.
A witness named Vicky recounted, “I saw them pick up the backpack. He was lying there, and the police were performing CPR. Bystanders tried to help before the officers arrived. I don’t think that boy was doing anything wrong. He seemed to be on his way to school, carrying a backpack. He was still just a kid.”
Authorities confirmed that the teenager was on foot during the incident. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at Comer Children’s Hospital.
The two men who were injured, 55 and 61 years old, were in a now-bullet-riddled red Dodge Caravan. CPD said the 61-year-old was shot in the back, and the 55-year-old was shot in the right arm.
The Dodge’s driver kept on going for a half mile before pulling into a nearby tire shop in the 5000-block of South Ashland Avenue for help.
“I saw a car at high speed, coming down the alley with a flat tire, so first thing I thought, it was a customer looking to get a tire repair,” said tire shop employee Leo. “The passenger got shot in the back, as he informed me. And the driver, I guess, bullet ricocheted, and it sliced his forearm by the elbow.”
While police initially reported the two injured men as being in critical condition, the tire shop employee said both appeared to be reasonably OK. One of them was potentially released from Stroger Hospital, where they were being treated, by Tuesday afternoon.
While the timeline is not clear, it was a short time later when police, who had apparently identified the vehicle carrying the gunmen, chased them down to West 44th Street and South Wolcott Avenue.
The masked men left behind the Jeep and an assault-style rifle, laying in the grass, but not before they hit one man’s grey Hyundai, sideswiping it on the passenger’s side.
“They were trying to get away from police,” the Hyundai’s owner, Anibal, told ABC7 in Spanish. “It was just one lane, and he hit me because he couldn’t get through.”
That witness also told ABC7 he saw police apprehend at least one suspect after giving them chase through the nearby gangways.
CPD confirmed on Tuesday night that a person of interest is in custody.
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