[ad_1]
The shooter who, according to the authorities, thought he shot a Chicago police officer on duty and injured his friend, asked to be a police officer in Chicago before his arrest at the police academy a few years ago in connection with an invasion. home, sources said.
Police officials in Chicago said three people had been arrested for questioning since Saturday's shootings at 3:30 pm. Law enforcement officials confirmed Sunday afternoon that one of these people would be the gunman responsible for the homicide of duty officer John P. Rivera and of the shooting of his friend, who was in critical condition at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital, but who said should survive.
"The investigators have worked tirelessly to track the evidence and review dozens of independent video footage," police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said Sunday morning. "We continue to identify people of interest on the basis of the investigation and we talk to them." Guglielmi did not want to comment on the information regarding the suspect, the shooter, even his boss. He was in custody.
The suspect, aged 24, was arrested on July 3, 2017 after being introduced to her ex-girlfriend's apartment in the Woodlawn neighborhood, in the south neighborhood, and robbed her of a pistol on the head. In this case, the victim, aged 20 or so, told the police that the suspect had entered her home through a side window and had threatened to kill her before leaving.
Before escaping, the suspect told the victim that he was going to the Chicago Police Academy in the West Loop. She alerted the officers that he would be about to take a polygraph test as part of the application process to become a police officer, according to the records.
Officers called at the academy, and the suspect was arrested on the home invasion and gun charges. The records show that he later pleaded guilty in Cook County Court to a charge of attempted burglary and that he was sentenced to a probation sentence.
Additional details regarding the alleged armed man were revealed about 36 hours after the Saturday morning shootings. The Tribune did not name the 24-year-old suspect because he was not charged during the shooting that took place early Saturday morning.
An autopsy performed on Sunday confirmed that Rivera had died from several shots and that his death had been classified as homicide by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office.
At the time of the attack, four people were sitting in a car parked in the 700 block of North Clark Street in the River North neighborhood after being shot at. The group went to Stout Barrel House and Pizza, 642 N. Clark Street, before the shooting, officials said.
The two men who were shot and wounded are 23 years old. Another Chicago police officer and a civilian woman were also in the car, but they were not injured, police said.
The authorities have not yet clarified the motive behind the attack, but during the preliminary investigation they had no reason to believe that the two groups had met before the shooting.
The police were investigating whether Rivera and his victim had been shot dead in a false identity case, a source close to the case said. The investigators were investigating whether the gunman was involved in an altercation with another group earlier in the night near McDonald's on Ohio and Clark Streets, one block away from the shooting. They then confused Rivera and the other victim with this group.
Guglielmi, who had previously called the shooting a "devastating incident," said that it seemed that the guilty had reported to the Rivera sedan and her friends that she was inside, that They had walked and opened fire nearby. He added that the video obtained during the investigation did not indicate car hijacking as a motive.
Rivera was reportedly stationed for two years in May. The other officer in the car has about the same time at work, said police, but works in another police district.
Superintendent Eddie Johnson told a press conference that Rivera was "a hard worker who loved patrolling and problem solving" and was "very excited" and "very eager" to serve the citizens of Chicago.
Rivera lived in the Hegewisch district, a popular enclave for police and firefighters on the southeast side of the city.
According to neighbors, Rivera moved to the area at the age of about 6, recently in a house where his grandmother once lived, two blocks from the house where he grew up.
Sunday afternoon, the streets were flooded with blue, sign of support for the mourning family of Rivera. A blue ribbon was wrapped around the trees and porch railings. The signs saying "Hegewisch supports the blue" were clearly visible on the lawn. And flags honoring officers of the police force have floated in the wind in front of several houses.
Police cars were parked in front of the two Hegewisch houses connected to Rivera on Sunday afternoon. Police in front of his parents' home said the family did not want to talk to the media.
Neighbor Debbie Kubisz, 51, recounted that she remembered watching Rivera play in the neighborhood like a little boy. A large number of girls who lived nearby, including her daughter, had a crush on him, she recalls.
"It was a funny kid," said Kubisz, a school security officer. "He liked to make people smile."
Rivera also forged special ties with another neighbor, Sgt. John Sanchez, who told that he shared stories about his career with Rivera when he was a high school student.
Curious teenager, Rivera was looking for Sanchez, catching him in his garage or stopping while he was mowing the lawn, to ask about his work. Sanchez said Rivera listened carefully and that they would sometimes speak up to an hour.
"He wanted to hear all the stories – foot chases, car chases, fights," said Sanchez. "He liked hearing it. … He was amazed at what was happening.
Sanchez recalled that Rivera had passed the written exam to enter the police academy at age 18, the youngest authorized age. He then had to wait to be called to undergo further tests at the age of 21, which included a physical and psychological evaluation.
After passing all the tests, Rivera told Sanchez, he came home with a broad smile. When he announced the good news, Rivera said, "I did it! I did it! I'm in! According to Sanchez.
Most recently, Rivera worked as a patrol officer in Gresham District, in the southern part of the city.
Rivera did his last shift on Friday night. he had finished his shift around 9 or 10 hours after working on a murder investigation, the authorities said. He's busy with the paperwork regarding the homicide.
Rivera also spent some of his time helping to console the family of the victim who was murdered in his district, Johnson said.
[ad_2]
Source link