CHICAGO — Friends of popular bartender Marques Gaines, already baffled by the man's death, are now worried police will let his case slip through the cracks.
Gaines, 32, was outside a River North bar when he was knocked into the street and a cab ran him over Feb. 7. Police said Gaines was arguing with the man who punched him, sending him into the street, but friends have said that doesn't fit the Gaines they know — and they're worried his death won't be investigated thoroughly.
Police are investigating if Gaines was the target of a robbery, according to the Tribune. Authorities told the Tribune Gaines was speaking with two men when one of them punched him and the other man went through Gaines' pockets, robbing him before running away.
Police did not confirm that to DNAinfo Chicago on Monday, and an autopsy was still pending, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office.
Investigators are "taking all factors into consideration, not just if it was a robbery," said Chicago Police spokesman Frank Giancamilli, who said he could only confirm police were looking "at the overall course of events that led up to [Gaines'] death."
But friends said Gaines wasn't someone who would get into a fight, and co-workers told DNAinfo Chicago they'd heard he'd been robbed.
RELATED: What Happened to Marques Gaines? Bartender's Death Baffles Loved Ones
Jeremy Schnitker, who had been friends with Gaines for three years, said he wanted answers. He's worried an investigation into Gaines' death will fall to the wayside if it's not classified as a homicide.
"I think I know enough about the system to know if it's not a homicide investigation then God knows what the hell's going to happen," Schnitker said. "My biggest fear, everybody's biggest fear, is this is gonna fall through the cracks and we're never gonna really know what happened to our friend. And that's kind of a tough thing to live with."
Gaines' death doesn't sound like an accident, Schnitker said. More than anything, he said, he wanted "something with substance" to come out of the investigation.
"If somebody gets punched and his pockets get picked while he's lying in the street, and he gets run over and killed because of that, that to me seems like some sort of homicide. I don't think that's an accident," Schnitker said. "If it's not classified as a homicide investigation, which they haven't decided yet, I don't know what kind of priority status it's gonna get.
"I'm sure it will fall down the rung and it will be even harder for people to get answers if a couple of homicide detectives aren't working on the case."
Schnitker thinks others who knew Gaines felt the same way.
"I would hope that everybody involved in this wants to know what happened," he said.
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