Chicago police announced Tuesday that they have arrested a suspect in connection to the fatal shooting of a 7-year-old boy last month in the Humboldt Park neighborhood.
According to police, a 16-year-old will be charged with first-degree murder in connection to the shooting death of Akeem Briscoe, who was washing his hands in a bathroom of his home on Oct. 26.
Chicago police say that the teen suspect was arrested on Monday, and that charges are pending against him and two other adult suspects in the case.
Police say that they believe the boy was an unintended victim, caught in the crossfire between two groups who confronted one another in an alley behind the residence.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
“It was a group-on-group violence situation,” CPD Cmdr. Brendan Deenihan said. “The group was in the alley behind the residence, and a separate group approached, targeting the group, and shot at them. The bullet missed that group and struck the 7-year-old.”
Chicago police say they believe the teen handed the gun to another suspect in the case, and it was that person who fired the fatal shots.
The teen will face a judge in juvenile court this week, but it is unclear whether he will be tried as an adult.
“I hope that these arrests bring some small measure of closure to the grieving families,” Chicago Police Supt. David Brown said.
With the family already dealing with the loss of a father from complications from heart surgery, the family struggled to cope with the tragedy in the days after it occurred.
“A 7-year-old boy, man," the child's uncle, Terribia Misters said. "Didn’t get a chance to live life yet."
His older siblings and mother saw the aftermath.
“He said, ‘I’m okay.’ I wasn’t there, but I can imagine his facial expression when he said I’m okay,” Misters added.
Charges were also announced in a second fatal shooting, which occurred at a Greyhound bus station in late October.
That suspect, 26-year-old Rodnee Miller, was arrested by the FBI in Alabama on Monday, and is awaiting extradition, officials said.
