A man who was allegedly found with a gun one block from a Noble Square shooting scene this week was paroled just two months ago for being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to prosecutors and a CPD report. And, prosecutors said, authorities cannot bring charges in the shooting itself because the 24-year-old victim is refusing to cooperate with investigators.
Police began searching the neighborhood for two suspects with distinctive haircuts after the victim was shot in his left leg on the 900 block of North Noble around 9:18 p.m. Tuesday. About 15 minutes after the shooting, cops approached two possible suspects on the 1300 block of West Walton, but the duo allegedly grabbed their waistbands and ran away.
Officers caught one of them, a teenage boy, and seized a handgun from him, according to prosecutors.
The other person, 23-year-old Angel Sosa, pulled out a handgun and tossed it to the ground as officers chased him, Assistant State’s Attorney Brian Burkhardt said. Police caught Sosa and recovered the discarded firearm, which was loaded and had an extended ammunition magazine, Burkhardt said.
Prosecutors on Thursday charged Sosa with armed habitual criminal and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon. He was released from prison on April 9 after serving half of a five-year sentence he received for being a felon in possession of a weapon in 2018. He previously went to prison for 4-1/2 years for a robbery that involved a firearm in 2016, Burkhardt said.
Sosa’s defense attorney argued that the distinctive hairstyles police were looking for — a shag and a fade — are not unique at all, and police may not have had a legal reason to stop him and the juvenile.
Judge Arthur Willis ordered Sosa held without bail on the new charges. Sosa is also being held without the possibility of bail until state authorities consider revocation of his parole.
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