Source: Condo gym shooting suspect was 'menace,' made death threats to others
CHICAGO (WLS) -- A wheelchair-bound man was charged in a deadly shooting at a gym in a high-rise in Chicago's Fulton River District.
Reggie Daniel, 48, was charged with first-degree murder overnight.
A source close to the victim said Daniel was a "menace" in the building, saying several neighbors received death threats from him.
Police said around 7 p.m. Wednesday, Daniel shot 45-year-old Darrin Joss. The victim was on a stationery bike inside a packed workout room on the eighth floor of an apartment building at 555 West Kinzie Street when he was killed.
"The defendant approached the victim and pulled out a gun. The defendant pointed the gun at the victim and shot the victim two times - once in the head, once in the chest," said Assistant State's Attorney Marilyn Salas-Wail.
Bond for Daniel was set at $1 million Friday. During his bond hearing, Salas-Wail said Daniel had a prior felony for the manufacture and distribution or delivery of drugs in 1989. And he pleaded guilty to obstructing a peace officer in 1997.
Investigators said Daniel left the scene after the shooting and turned himself in at police headquarters early Thursday morning.
"Relieved I guess, you know that there's no one out on the loose anymore and that we can go about our lives," said resident Paul Cipollone.
In a statement released early Friday morning, police said the victim was shot after a verbal altercation. Neighbors said the two men had often argued about the suspect flirting with Joss' girlfriend.
"He said that Reggie flirts with his girlfriend all the time, and he was just getting sick of it," said Mike Bradley, Joss' friend and colleague.
A source close to Joss said Daniel was constantly hitting on Joss' girlfriend and even touched her. And a day before his murder, "666" was written on Joss' car. The source also claims Daniel also harassed several other women in the building, causing confrontations, but complaints were allegedly shrugged off by building management.
However, resident Deniz Tumer said she never had a problem with him.
"He just seemed like a normal man, nothing," she said. "Not a bad vibe."
Joss was a futures trader, described by many as the life of the party.
"He was a big Iowa guy. So he was always wearing his Iowa gear and what not, and he was pretty cool as far as talking to him about football, whatever it is," Cipollone said.
Building management has not responded to calls for comment. The workout room where the murder took place was back open Friday.
"It's just scary. This could happen to anyone. I don't know if there was a conflict brewing between these people for a long time or if it just was a snap decision. It's sad that it can escalate that quickly in a gym where you live," said Connor Lanman, who lives in the building.
The suspect's mother told ABC7 her son was paralyzed in a drive-by shooting 30 years ago.
