Chicago police are investigating after a man was shot in the ankle in Uptown late Thursday. But there’s much more to the story.
Police said someone fired shots from a silver SUV as the 32-year-old victim walked across the street on the 900 block of West Montrose at 11:54 p.m.
Shell casings were found in the street at Montrose and Hazel, according to officers on the scene. And one bullet flew through a nearby apartment window. Witnesses said the shots came from a gray or silver Jeep with tinted windows that was occupied by three men.
While investigators were in the victim’s nearby apartment at 12:07 a.m., officers saw a man try to run from the area after he saw police, CPD spokesperson Kellie Bartoli said. Cops “announced their office and tried to stop the subject at which time a weapon was observed and recovered,” according to Bartoli.
That man was taken into custody on a firearms violation. Charges are pending.
Police also recovered a handgun at the scene from a concealed carry holder as a precaution until investigators can confirm that the weapon was not used in the shooting.
Meanwhile, an ambulance transported the victim to Weiss Hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound to his ankle. He was released about three hours later.
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The man’s shooting was the second time that gunfire rang out at the intersection of Montrose and Hazel yesterday. Around 11:30 a.m., police responded to multiple calls of shots fired and people running from the intersection. Officers searched the area and found an unattended handgun on the street at 4441 North Hazel, but no arrests were made.
Five people have been shot in Uptown so far this year, far more than is typical. Three more people were shot in the second half of December, marking the start of an on-going spike in violence that local Alderman James Cappleman (46) has blamed on drug sales.