Teen killed landlord’s nephew after illegal eviction: prosecutors

A 16-year-old boy whose family was illegally evicted from its Marquette Park apartment gunned down his landlord’s nephew, Cook County prosecutors said Friday.

Surveillance cameras recorded Deandre Rounds walking toward his family’s former apartment building Tuesday morning with a gun in his hand and parking an orange Nissan Murano nearby.

Rounds allegedly fired his weapon three times at a front window of the building where Brewer was standing inside, in the 6600 block of South Sacramento Avenue.

Brewer, 29, was struck in the forehead and died.

Brewer was the nephew of the building’s landlord, who had illegally evicted Rounds’ family because they were behind on rent and a neighbor had complained about them, Murphy said.

Instead of giving the family an eviction notice and filing the required paperwork with the county, Brewer’s uncle changed the locks and turned off power to the first-floor apartment, Murphy said.

Brewer had been sleeping in a basement apartment with his girlfriend when he woke to the sounds of footsteps in the apartment above. Brewer talked to his uncle and went upstairs, where his girlfriend overhead part of a confrontation between Brewer and others, Murphy said.

When Brewer returned to the basement, he told his girlfriend Rounds and several others were upstairs, Murphy said. Shortly after, surveillance cameras recorded the Murano pulling up in an alley behind the building.

Just before he was shot, Brewer sent a text message to his uncle indicating that “someone was coming back,” Murphy said.

Three .40-caliber shell casings were found in the front yard of the building, which were later matched to the gun Rounds was seen hiding in bushes when he was chased by police and eventually arrested later that day, Murphy said.

Rounds was charged as an adult with first-degree murder.

Murphy asked Judge Arther Wesley Willis to order Rounds held without bail Friday, but the judge set the teen’s bail at $4 million instead.

Rounds recently started working at a Walmart in the southwest suburbs, his lawyer said.

Rounds is expected back in court Thursday.