Police: 6 killed, 24 wounded in weekend shootings

SHARE Police: 6 killed, 24 wounded in weekend shootings
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Two men and a woman were shot in the 6900 block of South Cornell about 12:20 a.m. Saturday. | NVP News

Six people were killed and at least 24 others, including a 13-year-old boy, have been wounded in shootings across Chicago since Friday afternoon, according to police.

The most recent fatal shootings happened within minutes and blocks of each other Sunday evening in the South Austin neighborhood on the West Side, police said.

About 7:10 p.m., shots rang out in the 4900 block of West Lake and responding officers found a 53-year-old man on the street with gunshot wounds to the back, police said.

He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital where he later died, said police, who added that the shooting may have been gang-related.

At 7:13 p.m., a 27-year-old man was on a sidewalk in the 100 block of North Cicero when several people walked up to him and opened fire, police said.

The victim–who has documented gang ties–was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he later died, according to police.

The Cook County medical examiner’s office could not immediately confirm either of those fatalities.

Earlier Sunday afternoon, a 25-year-old man was shot dead in the Chatham neighborhood on the South Side.

He was standing outside in the 0 – 50 block of East 88th Street when a white van pulled alongside and someone inside opened fire, striking him three times in the abdomen, police said.

He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 12:49 p.m., according to police and the medical examiner’s office. His name was withheld Sunday afternoon pending notification of his family.

Early Saturday, a man was shot and killed in a botched robbery in the Lake View neighborhood on the North Side.

Kevin O. O’Malley was shot twice in the chest about 2 a.m. in the 900 block of West Oakdale, officials said. O’Malley, of the 10600 block of Palos West Drive in Palos Park, was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities office said.

Kristopher K. Pitts, 22, was charged with first-degree murder and armed robbery with a firearm in connection with O’Malley’s shooting, police said. Pitts, of the 1100 block of North Central Park, was ordered held on bond Sunday.

WEEKEND SHOOTING TRACKER MAP

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Weekend Shooting Tracker map

Two hours earlier, a man was shot to death in the Little Village neighborhood on the West Side.

About midnight, 24-year-old Jose Velasquez was walking with his spouse in the 2100 block of South Fairfield when two or three people walked up to them from a gangway and opened fire, authorities said.

Velasquez, of the 2800 block of West 21st Street, was shot in the back and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 1:41 a.m., authorities said.

The weekend’s first fatal shooting left a 19-year-old man dead early Saturday in South Shore.

About 1:25 a.m., Demetrius P. Hill Jr. was shot in the head in the hallway of a building in the 6800 block of South Ridgeland, officials said.

Hill, of the 7100 block of South Constance, was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he later was pronounced dead, authorities said.

The 13-year-old was critically injured Saturday afternoon in a Homan Square neighborhood shooting on the West Side.

The boy was in the passenger seat of a van in the 3200 block of West Lexington when someone fired shots from a red SUV about 2:45 p.m., police said.

Family members drove the boy to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition, police said.

The most recent nonfatal shooting happened late Sunday in the Southwest Side Chicago Lawn neighborhood.

The 18-year-old man was standing on a sidewalk in the 6800 block of South Western at 11:45 p.m. when he heard shots and felt pain, police said. He was shot in his left elbow and walked into Holy Cross Hospital, where his condition stabilized.

Also late Sunday, an off-duty Cook County sheriff’s correctional officer shot a man during an attempted robbery in the East Garfield Park neighborhood.

The officer was fired at by an armed man in the 3400 block of West Madison about 10:30 p.m., according to Chicago Police and the Cook County sheriff’s office. He returned fire, shooting the suspect in the leg.

Police said the exchange of gunfire happened during a robbery.

The suspect, a man whose age was not immediately available, was shot in the lower right leg and drove himself to Stroger Hospital, police said. He was in custody at the hospital early Monday.

The officer did not appear to be injured, but was taken to a hospital as a precaution, the sheriff’s office said.

At least 21 other people have been shot in Chicago since 4 p.m. Friday.

In other Chicago violence, a 43-year-old man was fatally stabbed in a Pilsen neighborhood bar early Saturday.

About 12:40 a.m., Rodolfo Avina was stabbed in the neck while he was in a bar in the 900 block of West 18th Street. Avina, who lived in the 700 block of North Franklin, was dead at the scene, authorities said.

Ulises Almaraz, 29, of Berwyn, faces one count of first-degree murder in connection with the death, Chicago Police announced early Sunday. Cook County prosecutors said Almaraz was jealous of Avina talking to his girlfriend.

Almaraz was denied bond in court on Sunday.

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