Prosecutors on Sunday charged a 22-year-old man with fatally shooting Brandon McGee near the Western Blue Line station after last year’s Puerto Rican Day festivities. An arrest warrant was issued for Lazerice Drew for the murder on July 6, 2020, but he remained at large until police caught up with him following a traffic crash on Saturday, officials said.
Around 6:58 p.m. on June 20, 2020, Drew and two co-offenders crossed Western Avenue, yelling for McGee and his companion to identify their gang affiliation, according to prosecutors and police. McGee and his companion began running when they saw Drew moving toward his waistband as if he had a gun, Assistant State’s Attorney Kathryn Morrissey said.
Drew then shot McGee and his 24-year-old companion as they ran away, Morrissey said. One bullet struck McGee in the neck, killing him. After the shooting last year, police said neither victim appeared to have had previous contact with CPD.
Morrissey said Drew changed his shirt and ditched his gun in a nearby alley. The shootings and Drew’s actions in the alley were both recorded by surveillance cameras and seen by witnesses, she said.
Police honed in on Drew by comparing tattoos on his social media accounts with images of the gunman, Morrissey said.
Judge David Navarro ordered Drew held without bail on the murder charge and for violating the terms of probation in a previous case.