Community leaders are calling for charges against a young Chicago police officer accused of using two guns to fire down a residential street in Little Village over the weekend, wounding one person during an off-duty altercation.
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability identified the involved officer as Edgar Delgado-Arroyo, according to a report obtained earlier this week through a public records request. The report states that no formal allegation had been made against Delgado-Arroyo.
Police records show Delgado-Arroyo entered the police academy as a recruit in November 2023. On Wednesday, a police spokesperson said he remained on active duty in the Grand Crossing District on the South Side.
Little Village residents have been left reeling from the chaotic events that unfolded early Sunday morning around the 2400 block of South Rockwell Avenue.
A deep distrust of the police department was palpable as neighbors tried to piece together what happened — and clean up the damage left behind. One neighbor, who asked not to be named out of fear for her safety, said the officer “shot in our house.”
“He shot in a couple of houses,” the neighbor said. “He shot our cars. He was just shooting recklessly. And it sounded like he had more than one gun.”
She said she saw an individual drive around the block a few times before starting a conversation with a small group gathered in front of her home and opening fire. When she went to the door to check on the situation, she said she heard more gunshots.
At least two other neighbors reported their homes were struck by the gunfire, some on the second floor of their buildings.
Delgado-Arroyo, 30, and his lawyer couldn’t be reached. Delgado-Arroyo earns an annual salary of $100,950, according to city records.
He had previously been named in one disciplinary complaint that was administratively closed, according to the City Hall inspector general’s office. Now, he faces investigations that could lead to a referral for criminal charges, according to a spokesperson for the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.
The Little Village Community Council plans to hold a news conference Thursday afternoon to raise questions about the shooting and “demand” charges.
“We’re very concerned that this officer has not been charged … he’s out in the street, out and about, like nothing happened.” said Baltazar Enríquez, president of the community group.
“If we don’t say anything, then it sends out a message that it’s OK to come shoot, nobody’s gonna do anything to you,” Enriquez added.
Altercation devolved into gunfire
Officers reported a shooting near 24th Street and Rockwell Avenue around 12:45 a.m. Sunday, according to police radio recordings. They had been called to the area about an hour earlier for another report of shots fired.
“There’s one male Hispanic shooting towards Washtenaw on 24th,” an officer reported.
A dispatcher alerted officers that she saw the shooter on a camera, standing behind an SUV with a gun in his hand, according to a recording. Seconds later, another caller reported a person shot halfway down the block.
Officers found the suspected shooter and confirmed he was an off-duty police officer who had been punched in the face and was bleeding from his left eye, according to radio traffic. One officer reported the off-duty officer wasn’t shot, then added there were “gang members on the block.” Delgado-Arroyo wasn’t named in the recordings.
By around 1 a.m., police declared the scene secured and shut off their body-worn cameras.
In a statement released Tuesday, COPA said the officer involved in the shooting was driving when he encountered a group on the block, but the oversight agency didn’t name the officer publicly. He exchanged words with a male, then fired a gun “multiple times,” COPA said.
COPA’s statement said the officer drove toward the 2300 block of South Rockwell Street, got out of his vehicle and “fired additional shots from two firearms simultaneously” toward the area of the initial altercation. The location of the incident is confirmed in the report that identifies Delgado-Arroyo as the officer involved.
A male was struck twice and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in fair condition, police said. Police initially referred to the male as an “offender,” saying he hit the off-duty cop in the face during the argument. COPA didn’t repeat that claim.
The male was taken into custody and later released, according to police. The spokesperson for the state’s attorney’s office said police never contacted its felony review unit to review potential charges against the male.
A second male suffered an injury to his arm and took himself to Mount Sinai in good condition, police said, without noting how he was injured.
The off-duty officer was treated for minor injuries and released from a hospital, COPA said.
Enríquez, president of the Little Village Community Council, said he wants the officer and other cops who may live in the neighborhood to understand “they’re not above the law.”
“We don’t need cowboys,” he said. “We need officers.”