Son of Chicago firefighter stabbed, found dead near burning vehicle in Grand Crossing

The son of a Chicago firefighter was found stabbed to death early Saturday near a burning van in Grand Crossing.

The body of 25-year-old Tyler Bernicky, of Bronzeville, was found about 6 a.m. in the 7900 block of South Ingleside Avenue when officers responded to a report of a burning vehicle in the block, according to Chicago police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

He was lying unresponsive on a sidewalk and pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said. Bernicky had been stabbed twice in his chest, several times in the arm and hand and once in his ankle.

A news conference on the murder was being planned for Monday at Chicago police headquarters, said anti-violence activist Andrew Holmes, who’s been in touch with the family.

“They’re just totally in shock right now,” Holmes said.

Area South detectives recovered a police camera from the area, and are conducting a homicide investigation, police said. Detectives determined that Bernicky was inside the van shortly before it was burned.

An autopsy released Sunday found that Bernicky died of multiple sharp force injuries, the medical examiner’s office said. His death was ruled a homicide.

A source confirmed Bernicky was the son of a lieutenant in the fire department who is stationed at a fire house near O’Hare Airport. Fire Commissioner Richard Ford and the department’s chaplain had met with the lieutenant earlier in the day, the source said.

Bernicky’s criminal history in Cook County includes several counts of driving on a suspended license and a 2015 guilty plea for obstructing identification, according to county records.

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