A 33-year-old man was fatally shot in his car outside his home in a southwest suburb Wednesday in what witnesses called an “assassination.”
Police said the shooting happened just after noon Wednesday in the 3700 block of Forest Avenue in Brookfield. Officers arriving at the scene found Michael Smith shot and unresponsive in the front seat of a vehicle.
While few details have been released on the shooting, neighbors say they heard up to nine shots.
"Without a doubt you knew it was gun shots right away cause it was so many of them,” said Dan Feeney. “It was bam, bam, bam, a short break, then bam, bam. He did not have chance. It was more than 9 shots. Everyone waited until the gunfire stopped and then we all came out."
The suspects fled in a blue, newer model four-door hatchback, which police found Friday morning, according to Chief James Episcopo.
"Late this morning we located the vehicle in question,” Episcopo said. “No suspects in custody at this time but we are pursuing new and active leads. There's a lot of buzz around here right now."
Some acquaintances say they believe the shooting may be connected to Smith's work and a court case he reportedly testified in earlier that day, but Brookfield police could not confirm that information and would only say they are investigating every possibility.
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Smith worked as a mobile supervisor at Advanced Security Solutions in Des Plaines.
The company wrote on Facebook that he “was a valued member of our family and a brother to all of us.”
“He will be deeply missed,” the post read.
A GoFundMe page has since been started to help Smith’s family.
According to the page, Smith had a wife and child and “was just a big teddy bear.”
“A wonderful, loving husband, father, son and friend was taken too soon from our world,” the page reads. “His family's lives have been changed forever. Mike loved his family more than words can describe and anyone who ever saw them knew it.”
As of Saturday, the page had more than $21,000 in donations with a goal of $5,000.
