An off-duty Chicago police officer has been shot and killed.
According to Fox 32, John Rivera, 23, was shot while sitting inside a parked car in Chicago’s River North neighborhood on Saturday.
NBC News reports that Rivera had just finished his shift early Saturday morning and had plans to join friends at a nightclub outing when he was shot while sitting in his parked Honda with three other people, including another off-duty officer. According to Fox 32, three men walked up to the car and shot directly into it, fatally shooting Rivera and critically injuring another unidentified man, also 23, who is being treated at a nearby hospital.
“What we know about this incident so far is just really disgusting,” Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson told Fox 32. “This appears to be an unprovoked attack.”
A CBS Chicago reporter said in a Twitter post that the shooting may be a case of mistaken identity.
John Rivera was known as John Petty to his friends who shared these pics of #ChicagoPolice officer with @cbschicago. John was off-duty when he was tragically shot & killed after a night out in #RiverNorth. #CPD says it could be case of mistaken identity. #RIP @Chicago_Police pic.twitter.com/XQJeR4zRyO
— LAUREN VICTORY (@LaurenVictory) March 23, 2019
Police have not yet apprehended a suspect, but are reportedly examining surveillance video from the scene and have identified a person of interest who is being questioned. Authorities have not yet recovered the murder weapon.
“Detectives are working right now to trace the moves of these offenders,” Johnson reportedly said. “Mark my words, we will find them.”
This is a developing story. CrimeOnline will provide further updates when more information is available.
