Ear Hustle

Killing In Chicago’s South Loop Lounge; 1 Dead Others Wounded

shooiting

One man was killed and another wounded in a shooting inside a music lounge in the South Loop early Saturday. The two were among a total of eight people shot across the city since Friday afternoon.

The fatal shooting happened about 1:20 a.m. inside the Riff Music Lounge, 2239 S. Michigan Ave.

Two men got into an argument over a woman inside the lounge. One of the men was escorted out but later returned with a gun, shooting the man he had argued with, police said.

The 36-year-old man was shot in his abdomen, police said. He was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. He was identified as Michael Ricks of the 2300 block of South State Street, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

A 39-year-old man who police said was not involved in the argument was also wounded in the shooting. The man was shot in his abdomen as well and drove himself to John H. Stroger Hospital, where his condition stabilized. The gunman fled the lounge, and police were searching for the man as of Saturday morning.

The shooting caused a chaotic scene outside the South Loop bar. Police cars, ambulances and a fire truck filled the 2200 block of South Michigan Avenue, while those who had been inside the lounge as well as onlookers lingered outside for more than an hour afterward.

Some who had been inside the bar remembered hearing one or two pops before patrons began rushing to leave.

“We heard a ‘pop’ and we thought it was a bottle of champagne,” said one man who asked not to be identified. “Then we saw a guy fall to the floor.”

Another witness who was with the man said the lounge emptied quickly following the gunshots.

“They scattered like roaches,” the woman, who also declined to be named, said of patrons inside.

riff lounge

In separate shootings, a man was shot about 2 a.m. on the Near West Side. The 29-year-old man was standing near Randolph and Ada streets when he heard gunfire and felt pain, police said. The man had been shot in his back, left thigh and elbow. An acquaintance drove him to Rush Medical Center. The man was later transferred to John H. Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.

About 1:45 a.m. Saturday, a 27-year-old woman was shot in the Bucktown neighborhood. The woman was a passenger in a vehicle in the 2000 block of West Fullerton Avenue when someone inside a black sedan pulled alongside the vehicle and opened fire, grazing the woman’s legs. She then got into her own vehicle and drove herself to Presence Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center, where she was expected to be treated and released, police said.

About 10 minutes after the fatal South Loop shooting, a 28-year-old man was shot in Belmont Central on the city’s Northwest Side. The man was sitting in a parked vehicle in an alleyway in the 6300 block of West Belmont Avenue when a gray sedan pulled behind the vehicle, police said. Someone inside the gray sedan fired shots, hitting the 28-year-old man in the chin and his right side. The man drove himself to Community First Medical Center, where he was listed in serious condition, police said. The man was later transferred to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center for further treatment. More details were not immediately available.

About 7:15 p.m. in the South Austin neighborhood, a 23-year-old man was shot while sitting in a minivan, authorities said. The man was in the vehicle in the 5300 block of West Jackson Boulevard when another vehicle approached and someone got out and shot at the man, hitting him, police said. The man was hit in the groin and hip, and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition.

About 6 p.m. in the Ashburn neighborhood, another 23-year-old man was wounded in a shooting following a dispute in a cellphone store in a strip mall. The man went into the store and got into a dispute with someone else, who pulled out a gun and shot him, police said. The victim was shot in the chest, and the attacker fled the scene. The man was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in serious condition.

A 20-year-old man was shot in the West Englewood neighborhood Friday afternoon, police said. The man told authorities he was shot in the 6700 block of South Hoyne Avenue about 2 p.m., said Officer Thomas Sweeney, a police spokesman. The man’s attacker may have been in a vehicle, police said. The man suffered gunshot wounds to the leg and back and was taken to Mount Sinai, where he was in serious condition, police said.

As of early Saturday, no one was in custody in the shootings.

Source: Chicago Tribune

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Most Popular

To Top