A Cicero teenager was arrested in New York on Thursday after a Cicero police investigation into the shooting death of a Morton East High School student. The 17-year-old is being held by authorities on an arrest warrant for charges of First-Degree murder and Aggravated Battery with a Firearm for the shooting death of 17-year-old Johan Adarve Sanchez. The suspect is now awaiting extradition back to Illinois, with official charges pending upon his return. Around 3:20 p.m. on Jan. 8, Cicero Police responded to a call of a shooting victim in the 2100 block of South 59th Avenue. Officers found the victim unresponsive, suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest, and was transported to Loyola University Medical Center, where he later died from his wound. Investigators determined there was a large fight between two rival groups of teenagers. Based on witness statements and video recovered from the scene, detectives learned the offender shot the victim, fled the scene on foot, then discarded the firearm in a nearby yard, which investigators soon recovered.

The offender, who is not a student at Morton East, was identified by several witnesses. Police made several attempts to locate the offender but learned he had already fled to New York. Cicero Police presented evidence to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s felony review unit, which approved an arrest warrant. On Thursday, detectives gathered intelligence from the Amtrak Police Department that the offender purchased an Amtrak train ticket to leave New York City for Chicago the same day. Detectives then coordinated with Amtrak Police, who intercepted the offender and took him into custody without incident. Members of the public are reminded that these complaints contain only charges and are not proof of the defendant’s guilt.  A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial in which it is the government’s burden to prove his or her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.