Chicago firefighter charged with shooting man in face amid apparent road rage in Andersonville

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A Chicago firefighter is accused of shooting a man in the face in an apparent road rage incident on New Year's Eve in Andersonville, sources said Tuesday.

The 35-year-old victim was in a Jeep in the 1600-block of West Foster Avenue at about 7:55 p.m. Sunday when police said he tried to make a U-turn near Paulina Street. That's when the firefighter allegedly got out of a vehicle and fired shots at him.

The victim was transported to Illinois Masonic Hospital in critical condition after being shot in the face, police said. A weapon was recovered from the scene.

Omotayo Kassim, 34, has been charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery, among other charges, Chicago police said on Tuesday evening. Sources say Kassim is a firefighter.

Surveillance video taken minutes before the shooting shows the victim's black Jeep being pursued by the shooter's white Tahoe, as both vehicles turn from Foster onto Clark Street, hitting a vehicle stopped at the light in the process.

The owner of the vehicle involved in the crash did not want to be fully identified.

"They didn't stop after hitting me. They went to the alley speeding, through a red light," Razu said.

After leaving the scene of the crash, a witness, who did not want to be identified, said the two vehicles drove around the block, as the pursuit continued west on Foster

"From what we saw on the Foster side, the Tahoe was ramming onto the Jeep, and the Jeep was trying to get away from him," the witness said. "He was attacking the Jeep with his car. I don't think anyone could get away from those grills. A few minutes later we saw all the police cars."

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