CHICAGO — A 19-year-old man was killed after being shot in Belmont Cragin, Chicago Fire Department officials said.
Crews responded to the incident at Belmont and Cicero avenues at 5:57 p.m., fire officials said. The man was taken in serious condition to Illinois Masonic Medical Center, Police News Affairs Officer Veejay Zala said, but later died.
He was identified as Jorge Valdez-Benitez of Dublin, Ohio, a Columbus suburb, by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office.
Friends of the man placed lit candles on the perimeter of a line of police tape Thursday night. A man identifying himself as "Shorty" said he'd just come from the hospital where his friend had died.
"He was a good person, had a good heart. He had a lot of respect for adults and everybody here, and you know he was a peaceful person, the best person," Shorty said. "And he's gone."
A man named George, who asked his last name not be used, said the neighborhood is becoming more dangerous.
"I'm amazed they shot him under the blue light," he said, pointing to a police surveillance box hanging from the street light at the corner of Belmont and Cicero.
He said there are a lot of gangs in the neighborhood: "New ones I've never heard of. I see the tags everywhere. People say it's getting worse."
