CHICAGO — A judge has sentenced a man to 22 years in prison for killing a key witness in a murder case pending against his friend. George Reyes, 22, pleaded guilty to murder in exchange for the sentence from Judge James Obbish on Wednesday, according to court records.
On Christmas Day 2020, an accomplice of Reyes’ lured the witness, 20-year-old Sebastian Serrano, to the 3300 block of West 52nd Street via a Snapchat conversation, prosecutors claimed.
When Serrano arrived, Reyes allegedly walked up and shot him in the chest, back, arm, and legs. Police, who responded to a ShotSpotter gunfire detection alert, found 11 shell casings near Serrano’s body.
Reyes, who was on bail for a felony drug case at the time, got arrested for another narcotics matter about a week after the murder. While speaking with cops during that arrest, he mentioned that he had information about Serrano’s murder and identified the shooter by name, prosecutors said.
But the person he named was in prison at the time of the murder, so detectives became suspicious and began looking at Reyes as a suspect.
Meanwhile, investigators searched Serrano’s phone and discovered the Snapchat calls and messages that brought him to the intersection. Investigators allegedly found incriminating video and other evidence in Reyes’ social media records.
Giler allegedly told investigators that he lured Serrano to the intersection because Reyes, whom he called “gunner,” was going to kill Serrano for snitching, prosecutors stated.
Reyes later told a witness that he “felt good” about his friend’s murder case because Serrano was the only witness against him, prosecutors claimed.
The deal Reyes cut with prosecutors stipulates that the murder was committed with a dangerous weapon other than a firearm, a legal maneuver that allows Reyes to avoid a 25-year sentencing enhancement. By law, he must serve 100% of his 22-year sentence.
Prosecutors charged a man named Andres Giler with murder for allegedly luring Surrano to his death. Giler pleaded guilty to conspiracy against civil rights in 2022 and received an 18-month prison sentence from Judge Obbish, court records show.
Reyes’ friend with the murder case is Antonio Reyes, who is not related. Reyes’ murder case is still ongoing.
