Illinois State Police are investigating after a man was fatally shot by Chicago Heights police Saturday in the south suburb.
Officers on patrol about 9:30 p.m. saw several people standing near a dark-colored SUV in the 1600 block of 5th Avenue, Chicago Heights police said.
Four people ran from the SUV, and officers saw one of them was holding a gun, police said. The man stopped in a grassy field next to a fence near the 1600 block of Portland Avenue.
He was ordered to drop his gun but refused and fired shots at officers who returned fire, striking him, police said.
The 24-year-old Calumet City man was taken to Franciscan Hospital, where he was pronounced dead about 12:33 a.m. Sunday, police said.
Though his identity has not been released, an autopsy found the man died of multiple gunshot wounds and ruled his death a homicide, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.
“As part of standard protocol in Illinois whenever a police officer-involved shooting occurs, an investigation is currently underway by the Illinois State Police Public Integrity Unit regarding an incident involving a Chicago Heights Police officer,” Chicago Heights Police Chief Thomas Rogers said in a statement.
“Meanwhile, the Chicago Heights Police Department is dedicated to the safety and protection of the citizens in Chicago Heights and holds its officers to the highest standards of law enforcement professionalism,” he said.
The state police “investigation is open and ongoing, and no additional information is being released at this time,” Illinois State Police said.
