When Asucena Velazquez hugged her 17-year-old son before he left for school Tuesday morning, she never imagined he wouldn’t return home.
Pedro Ramirez was on his way from their Back of the Yards home to class at Tilden High School when he was fatally shot in the 5000 block of South Throop Street.
“It never crossed my mind that my boy would get hurt going to school,” Velazquez told the Sun-Times. “They robbed my son of his future,” Velazquez said.
Around 7:40 a.m. a stolen black Jeep Cherokee with four masked assailants inside stopped behind a southbound red minivan near 51st Street, according to a police report. At least two of them got out of the Jeep brandishing a “long gun,” and “fired dozens of rifle rounds” in the minivan’s direction.
The two men who were inside the red minivan, 55 and 61, were shot but were able to drive away and call 911 for help — but the two-sport Tilden athlete and honor roll student collapsed.
“During the barrage of gunfire, the victim, who was walking westbound on the south side of 51st Street was inadvertently struck one time in the right side,” the report said. He was pronounced dead at 8:20 a.m. at Comer Children’s Hospital.
Both men were take to Stroger Hospital. The 55-year-old man has since been released, while the 65-year-old is still hospitalized in stable condition.
A 911 caller who witnessed the attack gave police a description of the Jeep. Officers then chase it and took one of the four occupants of the Jeep into custody near 44th Street and Wolcott Avenue. The other three assailants got away on foot, according to the report. One pistol and one rifle were found in the Jeep.
Velazquez said she was at home when she got a call from the hospital that Pedro had been hurt in a shooting. When she arrived she said doctors told her Pedro died from his injuries.
Pedro’s death has left their family devastated, Velazquez said.
“He was a good boy,” said Velazquez. “He was respectful and caring. He didn’t mess with anyone.”
Velazquez said she wants justice for her son and hopes police will find those responsible.
A person of interest has been taken into custody, police said, but no charges had been filed as of Wednesday morning.
Pedro, who was born in Mexico and moved to the U.S. at 5 years old, was a junior at Tilden, where he played on both the soccer and volleyball teams.
His mother said he had dreams of going to college and studying engineering.
In the hours after his death, Velazquez said she’s received an overwhelming amount of support from Pedro’s friends and the community.
She said her son’s friends have stopped by and offered their condolences.
“His friends are destroyed,” Velazquez said. “I always knew he had a lot of friends, but I didn’t realize how much they loved him. But they’ve shown me that my son was an excellent friend and classmate. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
A GoFundMe to help Pedro’s family with funeral expenses can be found here.