Two men have been charged with first-degree murder in a shooting that killed a man and wounded another in the McKinley Park neighborhood Monday night.
The shooting occurred in the 3700 block of South Paulina Street after Julius Hernandez, 18, and Byron Quijeiro, 20, circled the block with two other people in a black Lexus SUV, according to prosecutors.
Quijeiro drove up to a man who allegedly flashed gang signs, and Hernandez fired a gun with a green laser sight, witnesses said, according to prosecutors.
The man, 31, was shot twice and was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. A man returned fire, and one of the people in the Lexus was wounded, prosecutors said.
Quijeiro then drove to a nearby alley, where Hernandez threw the gun into a trash bin, and Quijeiro drove off, according to prosecutors. Police had already responded to a call of shots fired and saw the SUV driving erratically, prosecutors said.
Police detained four people after pulling over the SUV. They also recovered a gun that matched bullet casings found near the scene, prosecutors said. Hernandez tested positive for gunshot residue on his right hand, prosecutors said.
Quijeiro’s attorney argued that he was present during the crime, but he did not actively participate in it. But a Cook County judge disagreed and said that the car Quijeiro drove circled the area twice before the shooting and Quijeiro earlier had typed out a text message about shooting someone.
The judge ordered both men held without bail on first-degree murder charges.
