March 23--A West Side man was placed on electronic monitoring after facing criminal charges because police say he fired a handgun at two people who stole his minivan.
During a hearing Sunday, a judge released Cruz Wilfrido, 44, of the 4300 block of West Cullerton Street, on a personal recognizance bond but ordered him on electronic monitoring, meaning Wilfrido will be able to go home until his next court appearance but must wear an ankle bracelet.
In court, Wilfrido wore a shirt with a picture of Darth Vader on it that said "Who's your daddy?"
Wilfrido was charged with one felony count of aggravated discharge of a firearm, according to a police statement.
Police say Wilfrido contacted them about 6 p.m. Saturday to report his Dodge Grand Caravan had been stolen. Officers came to Wilfrido's home to investigate and completed a preliminary report of the incident, police said.
Wilfrido, who has a concealed-carry license and firearm owner's identification card, left his home a short time later to search for his minivan. Wilfrido allegedly spotted his minivan with two males sitting inside just a couple blocks away in the 4100 block of West Cullerton Street in the Lawndale neighborhood. Wilfrido then fired his handgun in the direction of the vehicle, and the two males ran away, police said.
Police said Wilfrido returned to his home and hid the handgun before speaking again with police officers who were still on the scene and had heard the gunfire. Officers discovered Wilfrido had two semi-automatic handguns, a revolver and a rifle, and charged him with firing one of the handguns, according to the statement.
No one was injured as a result of the 44-year-old firing the handgun.
Tribune reporter Geoff Ziezulewicz contributed to this report.
