Man charged in murders of father and son outside their Little Village jewelry store is hospitalized
The suspect is also charged in connection with two other crimes, including a shooting and an armed robbery.
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The man charged with murdering a father and son outside of their Southwest Side jewelry store in November is hospitalized, officials said in court on Friday.
Authorities arrested Muhammad Thomas, 35, at a St. Louis hotel on Tuesday. He is charged with felony first-degree murder and felony armed robbery in connection with the killings.
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After being extradited to Chicago, Thomas was scheduled to appear for a pre-trial detention hearing on Friday, but ABC7 learned in court that he has been hospitalized for a medication issue and narcotics withdrawal.
Under the SAFE-T Act, the judge cannot hold a formal pre-trial detention hearing until the suspect is present in court.
Thomas is charged with fatally shooting 63-year-old Faustino Alamo Dominguez and 25-year-old Luis Alamo around 5:45 p.m. on Nov. 8 in the Little Village neighborhood's 3800-block of 26th Street.
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People from the neighborhood say the men were trying to protect their business, Joyeria Angelos. Surveillance video from that evening still haunts loved ones.
"We were begging, we were literally praying that justice needs to be served, because this is absolutely a devastating loss, like I said, for the entire community. My family members, my uncle and cousin, they were literally pillars of the community in Little Village," said Agustin Alamo, a nephew and cousin of the victims.
In the video, a man in a mask and hoodie walked into the family-owned jewelry store.
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About 30 seconds later, he came running out with stolen merchandise as the father and son chased after him.
Then, the suspect pulled out a gun and fires shots. Prosecutors say one of the victims used their own legally licensed weapon to fire back at Thomas, but that's when, they said, a juvenile inside the getaway vehicle also shot one of the victims.
Both the father and son died from the injuries they suffered in the shooting.
Prosecutors said that juvenile has since been arrested for another crime and later helped identify Thomas in this case.
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Agustin told ABC7 that he feels a sense of relief that someone is behind bars for the killings, and he is grateful for the community's support over these very difficult months.
"We just wanna say, 'Thank you,' from the bottom of our hearts. We want to say 'Thank you, thank you so much for all the love all the support, all the encouragement,' because again, these months haven't been easy for us as a family," he said. "And justice will be served."
Thomas has an extensive criminal history dating back to 2007, including several other armed robberies and gun charges. He is also charged in connection with a shooting that seriously injured a 26-year-old man in 2023.
So as long as Thomas is healthy enough to be released from the hospital in coming days, he will appear in front of a judge for his pre-trial detention hearing at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse on March 3.
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