Antonio Reyes, a Chicago man arrested at 16, is accused of fatally shooting six people over nine months in 2020, targeting strangers for thrill, according to prosecutors. Each victim, including a man buying a puppy with his children, had no known connection to Reyes. Charged with multiple murder counts and attempted murder after a previous arrest, Reyes’s actions reportedly stemmed from his gang affiliation, though the murders appeared unrelated to gang activity. Reyes, now 21 and linked to the shootings through evidence like shell casings, remains in custody without bail, awaiting trial for his first murder charge.
One individual had visited a gas station to purchase a soda. Another was seated in a car alongside a friend. A third was taking his three children on a trip to acquire a puppy.
This week, prosecutors revealed that a Chicago resident, Antonio Reyes, fatally shot six individuals within the city over a nine-month span in 2020, starting at the age of 16.
In nearly all instances, Mr. Reyes appeared to have no prior relationship with his victims and was targeting “complete strangers,” according to Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke in an interview on Thursday.
“It seems he was motivated purely by the thrill — to repeatedly take lives,” she commented.
Now 21, Mr. Reyes has been detained in a Cook County jail since his December 2020 arrest for one of the murders. Prosecutors announced on Wednesday that he has been charged with five additional murders and four attempted murders, all of which took place in 2020.
Authorities indicated that Mr. Reyes was connected to the killings via shell casings from a .40-caliber handgun, social media activity, and various forms of evidence. Additionally, Mr. Reyes faces charges for allegedly attempting to kill his cellmate with a shank while in jail, Ms. Burke added.
Mr. Reyes’s attorney did not immediately provide a comment on Thursday. On Tuesday, Mr. Reyes was arraigned on five counts of murder and four counts of attempted murder and pleaded not guilty, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
He remains in custody without bail for an earlier charge involving the murder of 26-year-old Luis Davalos Garcia on June 24, 2020, as reported by the office. He is pending trial for this case.
The only known victim, Damian Duran, was shot and killed during a drug transaction on May 1, 2020, and prosecutors stated that Mr. Reyes was connected to the Latin Kings gang; however, none of the murders appeared linked to his gang affiliations.
“It’s heartbreaking to consider that a 17-year-old could engage in serial killings over a short span — so many lives lost,” Ms. Burke expressed during a news conference alongside Chicago police on Wednesday.
In a seemingly random incident on November 8, 2020, prosecutors reported that Mr. Reyes fatally shot Jose Martinez, 31, while Mr. Martinez was in a vehicle with his three children, ages 3, 7, and 9, on their way to buy a puppy.
Mr. Reyes reportedly approached Mr. Martinez, “displayed a gang sign,” and then circled the block twice before opening fire, as stated in court records.
Larry Snelling, the superintendent of the Chicago police, mentioned that Mr. Reyes has been charged with attempted murder for firing at the children.
“This underscores the level of indifference this perpetrator had toward human life,” Superintendent Snelling remarked during Wednesday’s news conference. “It’s hard to fathom how anyone could so easily take another person’s life, especially in such numbers within a single year.”
He also stated the police would continue probing whether Mr. Reyes may have been involved in further violent acts.
“We have six lives lost and who can say how many others he might be responsible for?” Superintendent Snelling added.