CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A 23-year-old man was shot to death Wednesday outside St. Sabina Church in Gresham, just hours after the church hosted a peace march in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.
A reward flyer sent out by St. Sabina Church identified the man as Emoni Atomah.
Atomah was shot in the chest and abdomen at about 11:35 p.m. in the 1200 block of West 78th Place, Chicago police said.
He ran to a nearby car and told the driver he was being shot at, police said. He was driven to Racine Street, where police found him unconscious in the car. Paramedics rushed him to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he died.
Hours earlier, the church hosted its annual silent march for peace on Dr. King's birthday to remember those who have lost their lives to gun violence in the city.
"It's painful — It's hurtful," Rev. Michael Pfleger, senior pastor at St. Sabina, said at a news conference.
"You question yourself: What else can I do? How can we stop it?," he said.
A reward flyer answered that question:
- Come out of your house and talk to your neighbors. Be the blue light on your block.
- Have your church come out in their neighborhood and also offer programs for the youth.
- Take authority over your house and everything that happens within it.
- Talk to and encourage the youth whenever possible.
- If you need helo to get your GED or to get out of a gang, call 773-483-4300.
- If you see something, do something.
Fr. @MichaelPfleger says he'll be offering a reward for information that leads to the person who shot and killed a 23-yr old man outside @StSabinaChurch last night, hours after a peace march. @WBBMNewsradio #violence #Chicago pic.twitter.com/NceCLfAXvP
— Bernie Tafoya (@BernieTafoya) January 16, 2020The Rev. Michael Pfleger said he is not going to stop fighting for peace.
"Numbers are coming down, but it hurts," Rev. Pfleger said. "But I am not going to stop until we don't have any more casualties, until the number is zero."
Pfleger posted a flyer announcing a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. He knew the victim, Emoni Atomah, who often attended the church.
"He's a young man who's not a dangerous person," Pfleger said. "He's a guy who's been turning his life around…We're watching lives snatched right before our eyes."
The Cook County medical examiner's office has not released details on the man's death.
No one is in custody as Area South detectives investigate.
(WBBM Newsradio and the Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this copy. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
