Sneed: Cops confident they know who killed Tyshawn Lee

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A child’s execution . . .

Sneed is told that Chicago Police detectives probing the tragic assassination of 9-year-old Tyshawn Lee are confident they know who killed him.

“They know who did it, they are just waiting for someone to I.D. him,” according to a top Sneed source.

“At least two people were personally involved in the execution,” added the source, “but more are involved in what happened.”

Police believe the slain boy, who was shot repeatedly at close range, was “lured” into an Auburn Gresham neighborhood alley and “targeted” as gang retaliation against the boy’s father, Pierre Stokes, who told the press he thinks his son was targeted — but not because of him.

The fourth-grader, who loved basketball and dressing up, was placed in his basketball-laden casket Tuesday wearing a white tuxedo. He was eulogized at St. Sabina’s Church, the South Side’s largest African-American Catholic church, by anti-gun activist/peace priest the Rev. Michael Pfleger.

Pfleger told Sneed: “There will not be full closure on the murder of this child . . . this baby . . . until someone has the courage to stand up and help ensure the arrest of the person who committed this unspeakable crime.”

“I am sure we are going to catch this person. We must. This child’s family needs closure. But the community also needs closure,” he added.

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A child’s execution: Part II . . .

Lee’s way: A reward leading to the arrest of Tyshawn Lee’s executioner just got larger thanks to film director Spike Lee.

• Translation: Sneed is told that Spike Lee, who had gotten brickbats for naming his upcoming Chicago-based satirical film “Chi-Raq,” is adding a hefty donation to the reward tabbed at $55,000 Tuesday morning.

Lee, who was in Chicago on Tuesday publicizing his controversial film — which he describes as a modern twist on the Greek comedic tale of Lysistrata, in which women of ancient Greece withhold sex from their husbands and boyfriends as a strategy to end the Peloponnesian War — did not attend the funeral. (The film is slated for release Dec. 4.) But he did send personal condolences to Tyshawn Lee’s family.

Sneed is also told actor Nick Cannon, who stars in Lee’s opus “Chi-Raq,” not only attended the funeral Tuesday — but paid for the flowers for the funeral and the color printed program booklet passed out at the service honoring the youngster’s life.

The program’s cover was of the cartoon character SpongeBob Squarepants.

Tragic. Heartbreaking. Unbelievable.

A Day to Remember . . .

A big salute on Veterans Day today to all those of you who have given service and your lives to keep our country safe. No thanks will ever be enough.

Obama drama . . .

Legendary TV producer Norman “All in the Family” Lear, in town while Sneed was on vacation recently, gave President Barack Obama a chiding at a private fete.

Treated to an SRO lunch by former State Sen. Bill Marovitz at his “Carnivale” eatery, Lear enthralled the high-profile crowd with stories of his life. But Lear, 93, began with a few choice words for Obama.

• To wit: Sneed sources who attended the luncheon claim the Obama “thwack” followed Lear’s introduction by Marovitz, who told the crowd he and his former wife, Christie Hefner, were the first to take Obama to California “for his first introduction to the Hollywood crowd when Obama was a senator running for president.”

“It was Norman Lear who then tossed a major celebrity fundraiser for Obama during that visit,” Marovitz told Sneed Tuesday.

“That’s when Barack met Warren Beatty. Jack Nicholson. Carl Reiner. It was a time that Barack began developing Hollywood relationships. It was a huge success thanks in a huge part to Norman Lear,” Marovitz said.

Surprisingly that’s when Lear chimed in loudly and stated: “Yeah, and I never got a thank you note” from Obama!

“And I’m still waiting for one!”

“Lear did not seem amused by Obama’s oversight,” said the luncheon source.

• Backshot: Lear once had nine shows on TV at the same time, including “Maude,” “The Jeffersons,” “Good Times,” “Sanford and Son,” “ One Day at a Time.”

Sneedlings . . .

Whoaaaa Francesca! A verrrrrry big welcome to my new assistant Francesca Gattuso, who replaces my trusty former right hand, Diana Novak-Jones. Best of luck, Diana. A belated birthday to Kathy Posner, ageless and priceless . . . and someone you want on your side . . . Congratulations to Andrew Jasculca and his bride, Maureen Meehan, on their October wedding at the Sanctuary on Kiawah Island in South Carolina. PR behemoth Rick Jasculca, Andrew’s dad, is over the moon. And so would have been Rick’s beloved late wife, Judy. Today’s birthdays: Leonardo DiCaprio, 41; Demi Moore, 53, and Stanley Tucci, 55.

Follow Sneed on Twitter: @Sneedlings

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