CHICAGO — Prosecutors yesterday charged a Chicago man with attempted murder for allegedly shooting a good Samaritan who went to check on him after seeing his car steaming and smoking in a Walgreens parking lot.
Alexander Flores, 23, is the seventh person accused of killing or trying to kill someone in Chicago this year while awaiting trial for a felony. The cases involve ten victims, five of whom died.
At around 8:10 p.m. Monday, the victim, his girlfriend, and her mother were in a car outside Walgreens, 1614 West 47th Street, when they noticed smoke and steam coming from Flores’ vehicle, which had significant front-end damage, Assistant State’s Attorney Sarah Dale-Schmidt said during Flores’ bail hearing Thursday.
The 17-year-old got out to check on Flores, who was sitting alone in the driver’s seat.
As the teen approached Flores’ driver’s side, Flores opened the door and asked if he was in a gang, Dale-Schmidt said. After the victim said he was not involved in gangs, Flores pulled a gun and shot at him several times from about three feet away, according to Dale-Schmidt.
The victim, who had been shot in the neck, elbow, buttock, and scalp, collapsed to the ground. Flores, according to Dale-Schmidt, fled the scene on foot.
Chicago police arrested Flores after he returned to the scene while they were speaking with one of the witnesses. She also left the scene after the gunfire but returned to talk with police, according to Dale-Schmidt.
The victim is expected to remain hospitalized until sometime next week.
Flores has been on bail since November 2021, when he was charged with a felony gun possession charge. In that case, police officers who responded to a 911 call about a person with a gun found a loaded ghost gun in his waistband, prosecutors alleged. Flores, who lives on the block where he was arrested and had no previous felony convictions, went home by posting a $500 bail deposit.
His attorney said on Thursday that he has been working as a forklift operator for about six months. Noting that Flores returned to the shooting scene while police were still there, the lawyer concluded that there is “obviously more to this case.”
Judge William Fahy agreed with the defense attorney’s point but held Flores without bail nonetheless.
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.
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Previous reporting
#6: Man killed 1, tried to kill another while on felony bail, prosecutors say (April 29, 2023)
