COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A West Englewood man was held on $500,000 bail Thursday after prosecutors alleged he pointed a gun at two sheriff's deputies.
The deputies were driving in an unmarked car when they heard gunshots Wednesday afternoon and saw Aaron McNeil, 27, firing into the street in the 800 block of East Drexel Square, Assistant State's Attorney Erin Antonietti said during a bond hearing Thursday.
An arrest report says McNeil — who is currently on parole for aggravated robbery with a firearm — was "exchanging gunfire with a group of rival gang members."
The deputies parked their car and stepped out, crouching behind open doors, Antonietti said. They yelled at McNeil to stop, and he allegedly pointed his gun toward the car.
One of the deputies fired a single shot, missing McNeil, before McNeil ran off, prosecutors said.
The deputies chased McNeil and arrested him in the 5200 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue about 3:55 p.m., the arrest report said. When officers retraced McNeil's path, they found a 9mm gun and 14 matching shell casings, Antonietti said.
He admitted to the shooting, she added.
McNeil, of the 5500 block of South Loomis Boulevard, was charged with unlawful possession of a gun by a street gang member, unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, aggravated discharge of a firearm and two counts of aggravated assault of a peace officer.
McNeil is currently on parole for aggravated robbery with a firearm, court records show. He was sentenced in 2014 to four years in prison and released on parole earlier this year.
Cook County Judge Laura Sullivan ordered him held in lieu of $500,000 bail.
Contributing: Joe Ward
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