A 20-year-old gang member, Daniel Alvarado, faces murder charges following a shooting incident over the Fourth of July weekend in Little Village that left 47-year-old Moises Juarez dead.
Alvarado’s bond was revoked by Judge James Costello, who ordered him detained.
The shooting, which occurred on July 5 in the 2600 block of South Central Park Avenue, has drawn significant attention due to the circumstances surrounding Alvarado’s release prior to the incident.
Before the shooting, Alvarado had been released on electronic monitoring, despite strong objections from prosecutors.
In court records, it has been noted that he was previously held at Cook County Jail after he allegedly discarded a firearm while fleeing a crashed vehicle on March 24.
At that time, the car was reportedly leaving an area where shots had been fired at police.
On May 16, Alvarado was placed under electronic home monitoring in connection with that case.
However, a court filing on Thursday detailed a series of violations of his monitoring conditions that began on June 8.
According to officials, Alvarado violated his curfew eight times.
Furthermore, there were significant gaps in GPS reporting during the holiday weekend, including a notable absence of signal from 8:09 p.m. to 10:11 p.m. on July 5.
Alvarado was recorded as being outside his approved area shortly after Juarez was killed, which occurred around 10:10 p.m.
During this interim, prosecutors allege Alvarado was actively searching for a victim as he drove around Little Village while still wearing the electronic monitoring device.
As Juarez and a friend were eating at a taco stand at 27th Street and Central Park Avenue, they became alarmed when they noticed a black Nissan circling their location multiple times.
According to Assistant State’s Attorney Mike Pekara, Alvarado then pulled up in the Nissan with two passengers and directed a greeting, saying “Yo,” from the driver’s seat.
He subsequently brandished a firearm and began shooting, striking Juarez and resulting in his death.
Prosecutors emphasized that the act was completely unprovoked.
Using descriptions from witnesses and surveillance footage, law enforcement identified Alvarado as the shooter.
The police located the Nissan based on its registration, which was linked to a parent of one of Alvarado’s passengers.
Initially, one of the passengers confessed to being the shooter, but later recanted, placing the blame solely on Alvarado.
The other passenger, a female, supported the claim that Alvarado alone was responsible and did not anticipate anyone being shot.
Upon arriving at Alvarado’s residence to make an arrest on Tuesday, police observed him fleeing to a nearby vacant apartment building.
Upon apprehension, he was found inside, wearing only his underwear and pretending to be disoriented.
Furthermore, police recovered shell casings from Alvarado’s home that were consistent with those found at the site of the attack and on the Nissan’s windshield.
Alvarado’s defense attorney argued that it was plausible that one of the passengers might have been the actual shooter, noting that a firearm was not recovered from Alvarado’s residence.
Judge Costello highlighted that Alvarado was under electronic monitoring during the time of the shooting and reinforced the implications of the GPS data, which placed him near the crime scene.
He also referenced evidence allegedly found on Alvarado’s phone, including a video recorded less than two hours before the shooting that shows Alvarado handling a gun in the driver’s seat of the Nissan.
Judge Costello remarked that the evidence suggested Alvarado “killed a stranger on the streets of Chicago for no discernible reason.”
As a member of the Two-Six gang, Alvarado has a history of legal troubles, having previously faced a charge of reckless conduct in August 2024 for allegedly attempting to throw a rock at a rival’s car stopped by police.
This earlier case was dismissed in March.
Alvarado’s next court hearing for the murder charges is scheduled for July 29.
Additionally, he is set to appear before Judge Charles Burns regarding the ongoing gun case on the upcoming Monday.
image source from：chicago
