Harvey police believe a man who died after a shooting early Sunday morning may have been targeted in retaliation after seven people were shot at a house party in the city on Saturday night.
A spokesperson for the city said a man was found dead with multiple gunshot wounds inside a minivan in the 200 block of Calumet Boulevard early Sunday morning. According to the Cook County medical examiner’s office, the man who died was 28-year-old Jeremiah Adtutubofuh, of Chicago.
Preliminary reports connected his death with a shooting Saturday at a house party in the 14400 block of Des Plaines Street that left one suspected shooter dead and seven people injured, including a 4-year-old boy, the spokesperson for the city said.
At a news conference Monday in front of the Harvey police station, police Chief Cameron Biddings provided more details about the shooting, and said the violence was part of a longstanding conflict between “individuals with a long and disruptive history within our city.”
“We now know who the bad actors are. These are not random acts of violence or anonymous individuals,” Biddings said. “We are very familiar with them, and frankly, they have caused harm within our community for far too long.”
Biddings said police have increased patrols in the area and are looking at “pursuing charges where applicable.”
“Anyone who continues to endanger this community will be held accountable,” he said, encouraging anyone with information on either crime to contact police directly.
According to incident reports, the party was underway just after 8 p.m. Saturday when two people arrived and opened fire. One of the partygoers was armed and licensed for concealed carry and returned fire, striking and killing one attacker and injuring the other. The injured suspect was taken to a hospital in stable condition and is now in police custody.
The man who was killed was Charles Lipsey, 24, of Richton Park, according to the medical examiner’s office.
Lipsey was awaiting trial in three court cases that centered on his alleged possession and sale of stolen vehicles and forging documents at the time of his death. Lipsey spent about a year and a half behind bars after pleading guilty to a 2019 instance of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, records show.
In April authorities accused him of using Facebook Marketplace to sell a stolen 2023 Toyota Highlander in Lansing. About six weeks later, court records show Lipsey making a separate appearance after Chicago police arrested him for allegedly meeting a Schaumburg teenager in Chicago’s Fuller Park neighborhood to sell a stolen 2022 Toyota Highlander.
And on July 7, a Cook County judge issued an arrest warrant for Lipsey that accused him of using a fake vehicle title and fake driver’s license to sell a 2021 Jeep Cherokee in Country Club Hills. He was arrested July 23 at a status hearing regarding the alleged Schaumburg vehicle sale, according to court records.
He had planned to plead not guilty to two of the three charges, records show, and had not yet been arraigned for the case that came from Country Club Hills. His next court appearance had been set for Aug. 11, records show.
Preliminary reports indicated that on Saturday five people other than the suspects were shot, the youngest of whom was a 4-year-old boy. The boy is in stable condition at a hospital, and so are the other four victims, according to a city spokesperson.
Harvey City Council members Colby Chapman and Tracy Key were at Monday’s news conference, though they were not invited to speak.
Key, who chairs the city’s public safety committee, highlighted an upcoming meeting on issues including the most recent shootings. He invited concerned residents to show up to the Harvey City Hall at 6 p.m. Aug. 13 “to be vocal and speak about how they feel about their public safety in the city.”
“People are worried and we need to make sure we’re on the right communication level,” Key said, adding that departments including police only communicate with residents, including aldermen, through the mayor’s office.
“It makes it difficult for us to call and find out what’s going on or to get information,” Key said, adding that he wants residents to feel comfortable bringing their concerns to police.
A statement by Cook County Commissioner Kisha McCaskill posted on social media earlier Monday called for Harvey residents to come together “in healing and rebuilding” after the shootings.
“My thoughts are with the families of the victims, especially those now tending to the trauma and physical wounds of their loved ones,” the 5th District commissioner said. “No child should ever have to experience the terror of gunfire. No parent or resident should ever fear that a community celebration will end in chaos. These victims are our neighbors, our friends, our children.”
McCaskill added that she is helping organize a community town hall and prayer vigil “in the coming days.”