CHICAGO — After an off-duty Chicago Police officer saw a group of men shoot another man on the Near West Side Sunday night, he went after the suspects and apparently shot one of them, according to a statement from cops.
The off-duty officer was in the 300 block of South Leavitt Street about 10:15 p.m. when he saw shots fired from a car with four men inside, police said in a statement. The officer saw a man on the street get shot in the buttocks, Fraternal Order of Police spokesman Pat Camden said.
The suspects drove off, and the officer followed them in his car to the nearby intersection of Oakley Boulevard and Van Buren Street, where the suspects stopped at a red light, Camden said. At least two were thought to be armed, according to Camden.
Sitting near the light was an Illinois State Police car with officers conducting a traffic stop, Camden said.
The off-duty police officer got out of his car behind the suspects and said "very loudly" that he was a police officer, Camden said. One of the suspects pointed a gun at the officer from the back seat,an the officer then fired at the car, Camden said.
The men drove off in the car, and State Police likely went after them in addition to Chicago police, Camden said. According to the police statement, the car was found in the 300 block of South Maplewood Avenue with no one inside. A gun was found in the car, the statement said.
One of the men was found in a nearby alley with a gunshot wound in his neck and was in serious condition, Camden said. He was arrested an taken to an area hospital, police said. Three suspects are still on the loose.
The victim shot earlier was also taken to a local hospital, police said. His condition was not available Monday morning. The off-duty officer was not hurt, police said.
The shooting is under investigation, according to Independent Police Review Authority spokesman Larry Merritt.
