Loved ones said Charles Hobson, Sr. was simply headed to get something out of his truck when he was shot and his truck was stolen. Moments later, while police were still on scene, they said, the culprits came back.
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"It's just heartbreaking that he's no longer here for stupidity," said Kimberly Buford, Charles' longtime neighbor.
It took a single noise to pierce through the fabric of the tight-knit block.
"I heard one shot," said Tamika Wright, another longtime neighbor. "We love each other. We look out for each other, and this could happen to any one of us right outside of our door, and we have no idea what's coming for us."
Neither did Charles, who was described as the patriarch of South Throop Street near West 81st Street in Auburn Gresham. That is, until, police said, he was shot in his thigh just before 10 a.m., right outside his home of 60 years.
"He went to get something out the car, and never made it back in the house," Kimberly said. "It was nothing none of us could've done."
After shooting him, neighbors said, the culprits stole his truck. As the 86-year-old was being taken away on a stretcher, headed to Christ Hospital, where he later died, witnesses said Charles' stolen truck was then spotted in the back alley of his home while police were still on the scene.
"Trying to get back into his house, because, I guess, they wanted to know what else they could gain from this robbery," Tamika said.
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Then, neighbors said, they saw police take three young people into custody.
"They took off running, and they caught one at the block. They caught another," said Destiny Buford.
ABC7 was on the scene as officers canvassed the area for any evidence to piece together in this tragedy that took away a community's leader and left them scared on the very block they've lived on for years.
"Now, it's like, who can I go to now?" Destiny said. "Like, he didn't deserve this. No justice could bring him back. I can't just be out here by myself, and it's like, in the morning? Like, for what? Like, he didn't deserve this. No justice could bring him back."
Chicago police would not confirm whether someone or a group was taken into custody as they say the circumstances surrounding the shooting are still under investigation.
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