Man shot in Rogers Park; shooting not related to 2 murders, police say
CHICAGO (WLS) -- A 36-year-old man was shot Friday morning in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood., police said.
He was shot in the back after getting into an argument with the gunman, who he knew, around 7:45 a.m. in the 7600-block of North Greenview Avenue. Police said the suspect fled in a tan-colored vehicle.
The victim was transported to Presence St. Francis Hospital, where his condition stabilized.
CPD Chief Communications Officer Anthony Guglielmi said in a tweet that the shooting, which police originally said took place in the 1500-block of West Jonquil Street, is not related to two murders that occurred in Rogers Park earlier this week.
No one is in custody. Police said the incident is gang-related. Area North detectives are investigating.
Although the shootings are not related, police said they still flooded the area with officers.
"There are more officers in the area, more officers on patrol, more officers detailed in the area looking for the wanted person from the previous two incidents," said Michael Carroll, of the Chicago Police Department.
ROGERS PARK MURDER SUSPECT AT LARGE
Chicago police are still searching for the masked gunman who they believe shot and killed two men in Rogers Park earlier this week.
Community members held a meeting Thursday night, where CPD First Deputy Superintendent Anthony Riccio announced 40 detectives were assigned to the murder cases.
Douglass Watts, 73, was murdered in broad daylight last Sunday in the 1400-block of West Sherwin Avenue. He was walking his dogs when he was fatally shot in the head, just after 10 a.m.
Eliyahu Moscowitz, 24, was shot in the head around 10:20 p.m. Monday along the Loyola Park path near Lunt Avenue. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Ballistics confirm the same gun was used to kill both men, police said. As far as investigators can tell, the victims did not know each other.
RELATED: Masked gunman randomly targeting victims in Rogers Park, police say; 2 killed in 2 days
Surveillance video of the suspect was released on Wednesday. Police said it was captured from four different angles, moments after Watts was killed.
WATCH: Surveillance video of Rogers Park murder suspect
Riccio also spoke to the community at a meeting Wednesday night. Hundreds of people attended.
"The shooter lives within this neighborhood or in a very close proximity," Riccio said. "One of the distinctive things about him is his walk and his run, where his feet point out pretty significantly."
RELATED: $10K reward announced for information on Rogers Park shootings
The Jewish United Fund put up a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
"Know your neighbor, know your surroundings and look out for each other," said Rabbi Moshe Wolf, Chicago Police Chaplains Ministry.
A saturation team joined Area North detectives to keep watch over Rogers Park. Officers are patrolling around the clock. Even with the increased police presence, residents are scared, due to the seemingly random nature of the murders.
"It's terrifying that there is no obvious explanation for these," said Virginia Strain, who lives near Loyola Park. "That there is no obvious target. You can't take any action. There's no group that we can protect and there's no particular way that we can protect ourselves."
"To hear that it had happened so soon after, before we even knew that it was the same gun, it felt like no one could even catch their breath about it," said Wren Romero, who also lives near Loyola Park.
No one is in custody. Chicago police are working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The investigation is ongoing.
