** (Disclaimer: This video content is intended for educational and
informational purposes only) **
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability released video Friday of a
Chicago police officer fatally shooting a suspected kidnapper on the
Northwest Side. The body camera video shows an officer confronting a man
July 8 in an apartment in the Belmont Central neighborhood. After
partially entering the room, the police officer yells, “Don’t move.
Chicago police. Don’t move,” the video shows. The suspect, reclined on
the sofa, leans forward, yells something inaudible and begins to turn
over, the video shows. As the suspect places his hand near an apparent
handgun on the edge of the sofa, the officer lets off several shots, and
the suspect falls to the ground. He died later at Illinois Masonic
Medical Center, police said. Ephraim Eaddy, a COPA spokesman, said the
investigation into the officer’s actions is ongoing. The suspected
kidnapper, 42-year-old Luis E. Vasquez, had allegedly carjacked two
people the night before in the west suburbs, police have said. He drove
the man and woman — both in their 40s — to the 6200 block of West Grand
Avenue and held them against their will inside an apartment, police
said.
They were handcuffed, but escaped their captor while he was sleeping,
police said. An off-duty officer driving nearby saw them at 6:45 a.m.
and learned that they had been kidnapped. He called for backup. Officers
arrived shortly after and attempted to enter the suspected kidnapper’s
building, police said. Video shows them attempting to unlock a front
gate, but ultimately jumping a fence and entering through the rear
porch. After checking several empty rooms, the officer confronted
Vasquez upstairs. It was unclear why Vasquez had allegedly kidnapped his
victims. In a statement, Elgin police said that Vasquez knew them. The
officer who fired the shots was placed on 30-day desk duty, per
protocol, police said. COPA, which investigates shootings involving
Chicago police officers, is required to release video relevant to an
investigation within 60 days of the incident.
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