CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A 16-year-old boy and a man have been taken into custody for an apparent gang-related shooting over the weekend in Little Village that killed 8-year-old Melissa Ortega, sources said.
The teen has been identified as the alleged shooter and a 27-year-old man the getaway driver, police sources said.
The man was taken into custody Monday after homicide investigators pulled over a Toyota Camry believed to have been used in Saturday’s shooting on 26th Street near Pulaski Road.
The suspect was behind the wheel and a loaded gun was found in the driver’s side door, according to a police report.
Don Terry, a police spokesman, wouldn’t confirm that the two suspects were in custody. But Tandra Simonton, a spokeswoman for the Cook County state’s attorney’s office, said prosecutors “anticipate charges may be filed sometime this afternoon.”
The fatal shooting shook the Little Village neighborhood and prompted a large response from police. Officials had said Monday that they were following promising leads.
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Melissa was walking with her mother Saturday afternoon when a gunman stepped from an alley and opened fire, striking her twice in the head, according to an internal police report.
After reviewing surveillance video, investigators determined that a male dressed all in black stepped out of an alley near 26th Street and Komensky Avenue and fired at a 26-year-old man identified in the report as a member of the Gangster Two Six street gang.
As the gang member started running east on 26th Street, the shooter continued firing on the busy block, striking the young girl. Melissa was a student at Zapata Academy in the neighborhood, and her family had recently moved here from Mexico.
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In a statement earlier this week, her family called for justice.
“We want to thank everyone for their condolences and prayers, however we wish people would come together and help us bring justice,” the family wrote. “Too often we hear news of shootings across Chicago, this continuous activity makes us habituated to these types of scenes.
“That is NOT something we should have to be accustomed to,” they added. “Please don’t let her die in vain. No more innocent kids should be killed. Mayor Lightfoot needs to make Chicago safe.”
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A GoFundMe for Ortega’s funeral expenses raised more than $68,000, more than triple its original goal of $20,000. She will be buried in her hometown in Mexico, according to the page.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire & Chicago Sun-Times 2022. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)