Authorities release name of man fatally shot by Chicago cop in Portage Park

Less than an hour later, an off-duty Chicago police officer shot someone breaking into their home in Portage Park.

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A Chicago police officer fatally shot and armed man March 31, 2021, in Portage Park on the Northwest Side.

Sun-Times file photo

Authorities on Friday released the name of a man fatally shot by a Chicago police officer early Wednesday in Portage Park.

The Cook County medical examiner’s office identified him as 22-year-old Anthony Alvarez, who lived just blocks from the scene of the shooting.

Officers began chasing Alvarez on foot at 12:20 a.m. in the 3500 block of North Laramie Avenue, Chicago police said in a statement.

He allegedly pulled out a gun in the 5200 block of West Eddy Street, “which led to a confrontation with police,” and an officer fired shots striking him, police said.

Alvarez was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, police said.

Autopsy results released Thursday found Alvarez died of multiple gunshot wounds. His death was ruled a homicide.

Police spokesman Tom Ahern shared a photo of a weapon allegedly recovered from the man.

Police shared a photo of a gun allegedly belonging to a man fatally shot by police March 31, 2021, in Portage Park.

Police shared a photo of a gun allegedly belonging to a man fatally shot by police March 31, 2021, in Portage Park.

CPD spokesman Tom Ahern/Twitter

The specifics of the shooting were being investigated by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability with the cooperation of the Chicago Police Department, police said. The officers involved will be placed on routine administrative duties for 30 days.

Less than an hour later, an off-duty Chicago police officer shot someone breaking into their home in Albany Park on the Northwest Side. The officer shot the man in his face about 12:55 a.m. as the man broke into the officer’s home in the 3100 block of Belle Plaine Avenue, police said. The man was rushed in serious condition to Illinois Masonic Medical Center.

Wednesday’s police shootings marked the sixth and seventh police shootings in Chicago this month.

Early Monday, Chicago police fatally shot a 13-year-old boy and arrested a man after responding to gunfire in Little Village. Last Thursday, an alleged shoplifter was killed in a shootout with police after he shot a security guard and an officer in Back of the Yards on the South Side.

On March 20, an officer was shot in her hand Saturday during a SWAT standoff in the Austin neighborhood by a man who allegedly wanted to “lure” cops to the area, according to prosecutors. On March 15, an off-duty officer was ambushed by two gunman while stopped in traffic in the Calumet Heights neighborhood

On March 14, an on-duty CPD sergeant was shot while standing in the parking lot of the Gresham District police station, at 7808 S. Halsted St.

Read more on crime, and track the city’s homicides.

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