As community leaders called for criminal charges against a Chicago police officer accused of using two guns to fire down a Little Village street, new details emerged about the young cop and the circumstances of the off-duty shooting that wounded another man last weekend.
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability identified the involved officer as Edgar Delgado-Arroyo, according to a report obtained this week through a public records request. The report states that no formal allegation had been made against Delgado-Arroyo.
A law enforcement source said police are investigating whether there was an exchange of gunfire after the officer initially opened fire during an altercation early Sunday.
Delgado-Arroyo drove to the area after his mother reported that earlier gunfire had struck her home, according to the source. His father had been killed in a nearby shooting in July 2021, the source said.
A deep distrust of the police department hung over the neighborhood this week as residents 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 a gunman had “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 someone 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.
The law enforcement source said investigators are working to determine whether there was a shootout at some point, but need to test shell casings recovered at the scene. Police are also investigating the trajectories of bullets that struck cars to see whether they’re consistent with the officer’s position during the shooting, the source said.
Delgado-Arroyo, 30, and his lawyer couldn’t be reached.
Police records show Delgado-Arroyo entered the police academy as a recruit in November 2023 and now earns an annual salary of $100,950. Police said he’s assigned to the Grand Crossing District and was placed on administrative duties for 30 days after the shooting.
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 held a news conference Thursday afternoon to raise questions about the shooting and “demand” charges. Leonardo Quintero, a police district councilor in the neighboring Near West District, asked why the officer wasn’t detained.
“Police are supposed to be entrusted with extraordinary power,” Quintero told reporters. “That means they should be subject to extraordinary accountability.”
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.
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.”
The law enforcement source said Delgado-Arroyo was on the phone with 911 when he was struck and subsequently opened fire.
In a statement 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. The source described him as a 24-year-old man associated with the Satan’s Disciples street gang.
Police initially referred to him as an “offender,” saying he hit the off-duty cop in the face during the argument. COPA didn’t repeat that claim.
He 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.
The officer and a second male were also hospitalized with injuries, officials said.
Baltazar 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 told the Chicago Sun-Times. “We need officers.”
