Federal charges have been filed against two men who allegedly shot and critically wounded an ATF agent during a drug operation Thursday.
Bernard Graham, of Calumet City, and Blake King, of Chicago, were both charged with three crimes, including assaulting a federal officer, use of a deadly weapon and infliction of bodily injury, and use of a firearm during a crime of violence.
King is currently in police custody, but Graham remains at large, according to officials.
The charges were filed via criminal complaint, and officials will soon seek a formal indictment from a federal grand jury. Those indictments could come with additional charges.
A third suspect, identified by officials as Raymond Truitt II, was shot and killed during a gun battle with agents. A fourth suspect, LeAndre Smith, is in custody, but is still awaiting arraignment on charges.
According to officials, Smith was attempting to sell illegal firearms to an ATF informant as part of an undercover sting operation in Chicago. The transaction was discussed for several days, and as part of the deal Smith travelled to the intersection of 5th and Kentucky in Gary on Thursday to meet with the informant.
Smith then introduced the undercover informant to Truitt, who was allegedly Smith’s firearms dealer. Graham allegedly possessed the firearms that the informant was going to buy, and the informant returned to a vehicle, where two agents were stationed, to get money for the transaction.
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King handed the informant a bag, saying that the weapons were inside, but the bag actually contained kitchen pots and pans. King then allegedly pulled the informant’s shirt over his head, and then Truitt and Graham opened fire, striking an ATF agent twice.
Truitt was later killed when the agents returned fire, according to officials.
“The alleged conduct of these defendants is atrocious,” an ATF spokesman said. “If convicted, we will seek severe consequences for their conduct.”
The agent was later transported to a local hospital in critical condition, but his condition has since stabilized and his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
The operation began in south Chicago and continued onto Lansing and Gary, according to authorities.
Meanwhile, a police chase that took place in Gary around the same time as the shootings appears to be unrelated to the crime, according to officials. That chase left eight people injured, including two people who were airlifted to area hospitals.
