Chicago — An off-duty police officer opened fire on an armed catalytic converter theft team in Irving Park overnight. It was the second night in a row that armed men confronted the off-duty cop in the same location, according to Chicago police records.
The first incident occurred around 10:24 p.m. Sunday in the 2800 block of West Grace. A 43-year-old man, identified as an off-duty detective, told on-duty cops that he saw a black sedan and a silver sedan driving the wrong way.
The black car crashed into a parked vehicle, and its occupants got out and jumped into the silver car, a Chicago police spokesperson explained. The silver car then drove past the off-duty officer, and someone inside the vehicle pointed a gun at him before speeding away, according to CPD.
No shots were fired during Sunday’s confrontation.
Things went a little differently at the same location around 2:50 a.m. Tuesday. That’s when the off-duty cop saw several people trying to steal a catalytic converter from a parked car, according to a Chicago police media statement.
One of the thieves pointed a gun at the officer, who pulled his own firearm and opened fire, police said. No one was injured by the gunfire.
The thieves jumped into a Dodge Charger and a white Hyundai sedan and fled the scene, according to CPD.
According to a Chicago Police Department traffic crash report, the driver of the Hyundai reversed down the street and slammed into a parked SUV before fleeing. The report identifies the off-duty cop as a Chicago police officer who is listed in public records as a detective.
The off-duty officer was taken to a hospital for chest pain following Tuesday’s incident, according to the department.