CHICAGO — A Chicago man has been sentenced to probation for participating in a robbery that ended with his younger brother being fatally shot by the victim.
Oscar Alvarez, 20, pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery in exchange for a four-year probation sentence from Judge Michael Hood, according to court records. Prosecutors dropped four other felonies in Alvarez’s plea deal.
Alvarez and his 14-year-old brother, Pablo, hatched a plan to steal a gaming console from a man who offered it for sale online, officials said. On October 23, 2021, the brothers drove to the 7200 block of West Waveland, where the 29-year-old victim was waiting to complete the transaction.
The plan called for Pablo to grab the man’s Xbox and run back to the car, and his older brother would drive them away, prosecutors said.
But when Pablo got back into the car with the gaming console, the victim tried to stop the vehicle from leaving and then opened fire on the brothers, killing Pablo and grazing Oscar’s shoulder.
The victim, who was licensed to own firearms, told police he fired at the Alvarezes after Oscar displayed a handgun. But police never found a handgun, and Oscar Alvarez told investigators he did not take a firearm to the meetup, officials said. The robbery victim was never charged with wrongdoing.
Oscar Alvarez called 911 as he drove himself and his brother to St. Mary’s Hospital. His girlfriend, who was also in the car, was not injured.
Judge Hood ordered Alvarez to submit his DNA for indexing and to undergo random drug testing.