A 20-year-old man was shot to death early Sunday during a street takeover in Chicago’s Gage Park neighborhood, and officials believe he may have been trying to drive through the crowded intersection when he was killed, according to an alderperson. Alderman Raymond Lopez, who represents the 15th Ward, said he was briefed by police about the incident at 59th Street and Western Avenue, a major thoroughfare that has already seen at least two takeovers this year.
“It appears the victim was not part of the street takeover, but was trying to get through the crowd and was possibly shot for that reason,” Lopez said on Monday. Police are still working to confirm the exact details of what happened.
Street takeovers are events often promoted on social media that attract numerous drivers who block intersections to perform drifts, donuts, and other stunts. The fatal takeover on Sunday, which Lopez noted was not connected to Cinco de Mayo, involved over a dozen vehicles that shut down the intersection.
Chicago police responded to the scene around 3:20 a.m. and found the man, later identified as Guillermo Caballero of West Englewood, with multiple gunshot wounds. He was shot through the front windshield while driving and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Caballero was among seven people killed in gun violence in Chicago over the weekend, during which 24 others were wounded.
Video footage shared by the crime blog CWB Chicago shows a chaotic scene with cars filling the intersection when the shooting occurs. Although the police have not officially confirmed that Caballero’s death was related to the street takeover, Lopez pointed out that this is the second fatal shooting at such an event in two years. In October 2022, three people were killed during a street takeover at the intersection of Archer and Kedzie avenues when gunfire broke out in the early morning hours.
