Prosecutors say a man who was convicted of exchanging shots in a rolling gunbattle in 2019 was once again engaged in a shootout while traveling in a car in Chicago this week. Naheem King, 22, was himself shot during the incident while having a hand bandaged from a previous gunshot wound and while on bail for a felony, officials said.
King is the 36th person accused of killing or shooting—or attempting to kill or shoot—someone in Chicago while awaiting trial for a felony this year. The alleged crimes involved at least 70 victims, 17 of whom died.
Naheem King | CPD
Around 8 a.m. Wednesday morning, a Chicago police surveillance camera was recording activity in the 3700 block of West Chicago when the driver of an Infiniti cut off a Dodge Charger, and someone inside the Infiniti began shooting at the other car, officials said.
As the camera rolled, King got out of the Charger’s passenger seat, ducking and hopping on one leg to position himself behind the car, prosecutor Eugene Goroshko said. Wearing a ski mask, and with his right hand bandaged from an earlier gunshot wound, King shot toward the Infiniti, then returned to the Charger and drove away, according to Goroshko.
Police recovered the Dodge Charger, which is registered to King, nearby. And they found King at Stroger Hospital after he showed up for treatment of a gunshot wound to his leg, Goroshko said. He was wearing the same clothes as the gunman and had been shot in the same leg that the gunman was limping on—and he had that bandage on his hand from his earlier shooting.
After the shooting, Chicago police said a 54-year-old bystander was also shot during the exchange of gunfire, but Goroshko did not mention that during King’s bail hearing on Friday.
Goroshko said King was charged with felony possession of a stolen motor vehicle on June 4 and posted a $500 deposit toward his $5,000 bail to get out of jail the same day.
In 2019, King was convicted of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, reckless discharge of a firearm, and aggravated fleeing. Goroshko said King was the passenger in a car that chased another vehicle during an exchange of gunfire, then sped away from police for nine minutes.
On Friday, prosecutors charged King with reckless discharge of a firearm and Class X armed habitual criminal in connection with the Chicago Avenue shooting. Judge David Navarro set bail at $100,000, meaning King must pay $10,000 to get out of jail on the charges.
Separately, Navarro held King without bail for violating the bond terms in the pending stolen motor vehicle case so the judge handling that case could review the new allegations.
The “not horrible” series
This report continues our coverage of individuals accused of killing, shooting, or trying to kill or shoot others while on bond for a pending felony case. CWBChicago began our series of reports in November 2019 after Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans publicly stated, “we haven’t had any horrible incidents occur” under the court’s bond reform initiative.
The actual number of murders and shootings committed by people on felony bail is undoubtedly much higher than the numbers seen here. Since 2017, CPD has brought charges in less than 5% of non-fatal shootings and 33% of murders, according to the city’s data.
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.
Our editorial email address is news@cwbchicago.com
