A 9-year-old Chicago boy who was fatally shot this week was “lured” from a park into an alley and executed because of his father’s alleged gang connections, police Superintendent Garry McCarthy said Thursday in a crime he described as among the most “unfathomable” of his 35 years in policing.
Tyshawn Lee, an elementary school student headed to his grandmother’s house, was shot in the head and back Monday in a neighborhood alley on the city’s South Side.
McCarthy told reporters Thursday that the slaying was the result of two gangs fighting, potentially in a string of retaliatory events dating back months. He said the boy’s father isn’t cooperating with police.
McCarthy called it probably the “most abhorrent, cowardly unfathomable crime that I’ve witnessed in 35 years of policing.”
“Everybody is sick; everybody is disgusted.”
The child’s father, Pierre Stokes, has disagreed with authorities’ characterization of him and said he’s easy to find. He hasn’t talked about whether he’s a gang member but said police have spent more time pursuing him than finding out who killed his son.
“I answered every question they asked me,” he told reporters Thursday not far from the spot his son was killed. “They’re not asking me questions that I know. I don’t know the questions that they asked me.”
A memorial for the boy — stuffed animals, candles and balloons — lingers in the alley.
Police have executed several search warrants in the investigation, but refuse to release details. A “person of interest” turned himself into police Wednesday and was released between late Wednesday and early Thursday without charges.
Authorities have said they know the gangs and individuals involved but need help assessing who did what. They reiterated a plea for any information that will help lead to charges, acknowledging fears people may have of being targeted for speaking out.
“We’ll take those steps to keep it as quiet as we can,” McCarthy said.
At least $35,000 is being offered for information leading to charges in connection with the boy’s death. Members of the Faith Community of St. Sabina, a well-known South Side Roman Catholic church, have raised money from around the country.
The Rev. Michael Pfleger, a priest at St. Sabina who is known for his anti-violence activism, said he would pay money out of his own pocket to help anyone with information move from Chicago.
“This was not a drive-by. This was not a spray of bullets. A baby was executed,” Pfleger said. “We have gone to a new low that’s removed what used to be some codes, some barriers, some lines that used to be drawn in the community, some things in our city that were not acceptable.”
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
The murderer(s) will pay for this in a special way. What you do and believe in this life prepares you for the next according to the Bible. Matthew 18:6 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
Wyatt Earp and Bill Tilghman could teach us how to deal with this vermin and they didn’t play, neither should we! Smacking these punks on the hand doesn’t get it! Semper Fi.
Rev. Michael Pfleger, a priest at St. Sabina. ?? is this the infamous father pfleger? the friend of rev. wright & barry the bunghole banger? I wonder how long before he tells us it’s white christians that are at fault here.
If it’s o’bungholes butt butty, he’ll let you know after he pulls his rod outta o’bungholes bung hole.
We are loosing sight on the topic, a young and innocent life was cut short, gone are his dreams to maybe rise above the crime ridden streets of South Chicago, where is Sharptongue and the rest to denounce this tragity? Where are the Black Lives Matter groups to show outrage for this? Where Is Obimation to set the DOJ out to find the cowards who committed this heinous crime against a innocent child, and why was his father not protecting him… These are the questions… Oh wait, a nasty white man or Cop was not involved so the racist asses listed above could not care less it doesn’t further there racist agenda, Black Lives Don’t matter when its black, on black crime
AGREED!!! You said this perfectly!!!!
Just when you think it can’t get any worse in Chicago killing fields, it does. This is about as bad as it gets, so thanks to obama and his useless slime who bought the mayor position lock stock and barrel for his slime buddy, Emanuel, so this is the fundamental change we all heard about when running for president, now it is coming into full view starting in Chicago. Murder rates sky rocketing, racism exploding, economy collapsing, absolutely disgusting. PERIOD
I’m all in for gun confiscation nationwide–starting with Chicago’s gangs & ending only when the armed gangs of every stripe in every town & city in this country have been disarmed. Period.