Waukegan Man Wanted in Brawl, Shooting at Gojos Cafe

An arrest warrant has been issued for Johnathan Williams, 21, who is charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, aggravated discharge of a firearm and mob action.

Police are looking for the alleged shooter involved in a mob brawl in May that ended with three people shot at a Waukegan restaurant.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Johnathan Williams, 21, who is charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, aggravated discharge of a firearm and mob action.

Bond has been set at $1 million for Williams if he is taken into custody, according to Cynthia Vargas, a spokeswoman for the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.

In total, there are six men facing charges in Lake County Circuit Court in connection with the May 5 brawl and shooting at Gojo’s Cafe, 2929 Belvidere Road in Waukegan. Three of the six were shot during the late-night incident.

A fight involving several people broke out in the restaurant about 3 a.m., Vargas said.

At some point during the fight, Ronnie Nicholson, 28, allegedly pulled out a gun, dropped it and briefly left the restaurant. According to officials, by the time Nicholson returned, the gun changed hands and eventually ended up with Jonathan Williams, who allegedly began firing. The shots struck Forrest Jackson, 23, in the leg; Shawn Garrett, 18, in the back; and Leon Pruitt, 23, in the buttocks, Vargas said.

None of the injuries were life-threatening.

All of those charged in connection with the brawl — Jonathan Williams, Nicholson, Daniel Williams, 33, Jackson, Garrett and Pruitt — are Waukegan residents.

Jonathan Williams and Nicholson are facing the most serious charges.

Nicholson faces many of the same charges as Williams, including attempted first-degree murder, a Class X felony carrying up to 30 years in prison, along with a firearm enhancement to the charges that could add 15 more years to a prison sentence upon conviction. He is also charged with aggravated battery with a firearm, also a Class X felony, and one count of mob action, a Class 4 felony carrying a potential sentence of one to three years in prison. Nicholson also faces charges of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, a Class 3 felony, carrying a potential sentence of three to 10 years in prison.

Jackson and Garrett were charged with mob action; Pruitt was charged with mob action and felony possession of a controlled substance; and Daniel Williams was charged with mob action and unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.

Nicholson, Jackson, Garrett and Pruitt have already been arraigned and all have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.

Nicholson also appeared in court Monday on a separate, unrelated charge of aggravated DUI. A Sept. 8 trial date was set for that case.

Nicholson is being held in Lake County Jail in lieu of $750,000 bond.

Copyright CHIST - SunTimes
Contact Us