Two brothers have been charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of the cousin of National Basketball Association star Dwyane Wade as she was walking to register her children for school, Chicago police announced Sunday. On top of the two felony charges, he also faces a misdemeanor count of criminal trespass to land. Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said he hopes the arrests “bring some small amount of closure” for the family.
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The child, about 3 weeks old, was not hurt, family spokesman Edward Jones said. The fact that the men had been arrested for the crime was first made known to the public through a tweet sent out by Guglielmi stating that, “Overnight, CPD charged the Sorrells brothers for the murder of Nykea Aldridge”.
The man was not an Uber driver, as had been previously reported, Deenihan said.
There is video of the incident, Dennihan said, but no weapon was recovered and police don’t know where the weapon is. She wasn’t the intended target, Cmdr.
Aldridge was pushing her baby in a stroller when the bullets started flying. She died about 45 minutes later at a hospital.
“Nykea Aldridge registered her child at school on Friday afternoon”, explained Johnson.
Authorities said the brothers were targeting a man who drove two women from a suburb to Chicago’s Parkway Gardens neighborhood. The younger brother, who also on parole, is a “documented member” of the Gangster Disciples gang. He wore an ankle bracelet but had taken it off during a period in which he was allowed to look for work, Deenihan said.
Darwin Sorrells was on parole for a gun charge.
Darwin Sorrells, of the 7500 block of South Wentworth Avenue, served three years in state prison for 2013 convictions of receiving, possessing or selling a stolen vehicle and for unlawful use or possession of a firearm by a felon, according to Illinois Department of Corrections records.
This tragedy isn’t just noteworthy because Ms. Aldridge has a famous family member.
“They don’t care who they shoot and they don’t fear the consequences”, Johnson said, noting as he has in the past that about 1,400 people are driving 85 percent of the city’s gun violence. Wade is returning to his hometown Chicago after signing a free agency deal with the Bulls this summer.
Wade has reacted to his cousin’s shooting only online, tweeting Friday: “My cousin was killed today in Chicago”.
Wade has been outspoken about the topic of violence in America and, along with Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, and LeBron James, used their platform at this year’s ESPY’s to deliver a powerful call for peace, as well as a plea for stricter gun control legislation. 4 kids lost their mom for NO REASON.
According to the Chicago Tribune, which chronicles every homicide in the city, at least 455 people have been shot to death in Chicago in the first 7½ months of the year.
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Police say Derren Sorrells was on his daily break from an electric monitoring bracelet at the time of the shooting.
