River North: Third man charged in murder of off-duty cop

Jaquan Washington | CPD

A third man has been charged in connection with the March 23 shooting that killed off-duty Chicago cop John Rivera and injured another man in River North.

Police today said 22-year-old Jaquan Washington of the New City neighborhood has been charged with one felony count of first-degree murder and three felony counts of attempted first-degree murder. He was taken into custody on Tuesday.

Washington was identified as one of the persons who fired into Rivera’s car in the 700 block of North Clark around 3:25 a.m., wrongly believing that the occupants had been involved in an earlier altercation at a nearby fast food restaurant. Rivera was killed, and his friend was critically wounded in the shooting. Another off-duty officer and Rivera’s girlfriend, who were also in the vehicle, escaped injury.

CPD records show that Washington was charged last June with being a felon in possession of a firearm. The outcome of that case was not immediately available. He is due in bond court this afternoon.

Previously charged in the case were 24-year-old Menelik Jackson and 32-year-old Jovan Battle.

A judge released Jackson from electronic monitoring and a 7 p.m to 7 a.m. curfew just two weeks before the shooting. Jackson had been on those restrictions for six months as part of a plea agreement he reached with prosecutors in an armed home invasion case.

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About CWBChicago 4358 Articles
CWBChicago was created in 2013 by five residents of Wrigleyville and Boystown who had grown disheartened with inaccurate information that was being provided at local Community Policing (CAPS) meetings. Our coverage area has expanded since then to cover Lincoln Park, River North, The Loop, Uptown, and other North Side Areas. But our mission remains unchanged: To provide original public safety reporting with better context and greater detail than mainstream media outlets.