The 45-year-old man was critically wounded in the 7600-block of South Kingston Avenue around 1 p.m. Police say he was sitting in his vehicle in an alley when he was approached by a man who stole his wallet and shot him in the abdomen.
The victim was rushed to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition. Police have not yet released his identity.
The victim was preparing to do some work in an apartment on South Kingston and was in or near his truck that had been parked in an alley when a lone gunman approached him. Seconds later, an employee of a building management firm who was to meet the tech walked up, unaware of what was happening. That man, who does not want to be identified, said that the gunman ordered him to turn around and leave, which he did. Then, he later heard a single gunshot.
"(So what prompted the man to shoot him then?) I don't know. He told me to walk away, he pointed the gun at me and told me to walk away. So I walked away. Before I even got through the gate, I heard the gunshot. So I ran and called the police. (Did he have a mask or a hood on?) No, he didn't have a mask or a hood on. (So he was fully visible?) Right," said the building management firm employee.
The gunman fled with the tech's wallet and cell phone. The building management employee, quite shaken by what he walked into, considers himself lucky.
"He could have killed both of us. I'm just glad that he let me walk away, because I thought he was going to shoot me for a moment. And when I heard the gunshot, that's when it became real," said the building management employee.
Comcast said in a written statement on Wednesday: "This is shocking news, and our thoughts and prayers go out to our employee and his loved ones. We will continue working with law enforcement as they investigate, and further inquiries are being directed to and handled by the Chicago Police department."
Some Comcast employees who work in this neighborhood have privately told Eyewitness News that they are concerned about the threat of robbery and have raised that with their bosses over a period of time. They say there have been safety discussions, but they believe not enough has been done.
"We're committed to the well-being of all of our employees, and we provide training and take precautions to ensure our employees are safe while on the job," Comcast said in a statement.
There are exterior surveillance cameras with a view of the alley, but it is not yet known if they will produce anything valuable to the investigation.
