An arrest warrant was issued Friday for an Aurora man charged with fatally shooting Officer Luis Huesca last weekend in Gage Park.
Xavier L. Tate Jr., 22, is charged with first-degree murder in the April 20 slaying in the 3100 block of West 56th Street, court records show. No arrest has been reported.
Tate was previously charged with a misdemeanor count of criminal trespass to an Olympia Fields home in March, records show. That case is pending.
Huesca was attacked while driving from work to his apartment just blocks from the shooting scene, authorities said. He was still wearing his uniform when he was shot multiple times.
His SUV was stolen and later recovered nearby, according to sources. His gun and badge weren’t found at the scene.
The police department later issued a community alert that included surveillance videos of a person wanted in connection with Huesca’s slaying.
Officer Luis Huesca, a six-year veteran of the Chicago Police Department, was killed early Sunday. At the police academy, he was a classmate of Officer Andres Vasquez-Lasso, who was killed in the line of duty last year.
Chicago Police Department
The alert asked for the public’s help identifying the male “subject,” who police said should be “considered armed and dangerous.” The videos appear to show him walking down a dark street and wearing different outfits at two convenience stores.
As much as $100,000 in rewards are being offered for information leading to Tate’s arrest, with the money being provided by a combination of Crime Stoppers, the ATF, the FBI, the Fraternal Order of Police and the Chicago Police Memorial Foundation. Anonymous tips can be submitted at cpdtip.com or (800) 535-7867.
Saturday morning, a neighbor on the block of Tate’s listed Aurora address said his family lived there about four years until an eviction last year.
She complained of vandalism to her own home and other alleged criminal activity on the block when they were around.
“They’re the reason that everyone on the block has cameras,” said the neighbor, who didn’t want to be named.
On Tuesday, what would’ve been Huesca’s 31st birthday, his killing was formally classified as a line-of-duty death. The classification means Huesca’s family will now be entitled to additional benefits. The killing of Officer Aréanah Preston, shot during a robbery as she returned home from work last May, was similarly classified as a line-of-duty death.
His wake will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday at Blake-Lamb Funeral Home at 4727 W. 103rd St. in Oak Lawn. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at St. Rita of Cascia Catholic Church at 7740 S. Western Ave. in Chicago.
Xavier L. Tate Jr. was taken into custody without incident shortly after 7 p.m. Wednesday after a “multistate investigation” that involved the Chicago Police Department and other law enforcement agencies.
John Catanzara, police union president, discussed the maneuvering with the Sun-Times. When the mayor’s office began “pushing back” against staying away, Catanzara said, the slain officer’s sister told him if the mayor showed up, she would “make a scene and throw him out myself.”
Family, friends and fellow law enforcement officers filled St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel for the funeral. “This day is for Officer Luis Huesca,” said Police Supt. Larry Snelling. “This is his day, nothing else.”
Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza, whose brother is a Chicago police officer, spoke with the mother and sister of Officer Luis Huesca at Sunday’s wake and passed their wishes along to the mayor’s office that night.
The line of mourners who paid their respects to the slain officer stretched around Blake-Lamb Funeral Home in Oak Lawn. A combined reward of $100,000 is offered for the arrest of his attacker.
Funeral services for Huesca will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at St. Rita of Cascia Catholic Church at 7740 S. Western Ave. in Chicago, according to the Fraternal Order of Police.
A community alert asks for help in identifying the male “subject,” noting that he “should be considered armed and dangerous.” Meanwhile, those who knew Huesca have been left reeling. Rocio Lasso said she leaned on Huesca after her own son, Andres Vásquez Lasso, was killed in the line of duty last year.
Officer Luis Huesca, 30, was going home from work about 3 a.m. in the 3100 block of West 56th Street when a ShotSpotter alert went off, police Supt. Larry Snelling said. No one has been arrested.
The pair were standing outside about 3:11 a.m. Monday in the 3100 block of South May Street when a vehicle drove by and a male fired shots from inside, Chicago police said.
Democrats expecting to talk to Johnson about detailed education funding or a new lakefront Chicago Bears stadium discovered otherwise. The mayor told reporters his visit was about “making sure that we’re building on relationships” and reminding Pritzker and legislative leaders that Chicago deserves its “fair share of resources.”
Withour the Harrison Street bus terminal, or another site, Chicago would become the largest U.S. city without an intercity bus terminal. A new report should light a fire under the city — and state — to take action.
