These are the people the police have to deal with every day.

Man Charged In Slaying Of 9-Year-Old Tyshawn Lee; McCarthy Vows To “Destroy” Gangs Involved

November 27, 2015 6:45 AM

video

on facebookShare on twitterShare on emailMore Sharing Services

2

Updated 11/27/15 – 11:06 a.m.

CHICAGO (CBS) — A 27-year-old man has been charged in the execution-style shooting of 9-year-old Tyshawn Lee, police said at least two others were involved in the “unfathomable crime,” including one in custody on an unrelated charge and another who remains at large.

Corey Morgan was charged with first-degree murder Friday morning. He was due to appear for a bond hearing Friday afternoon.

“This is a crime that shook our city, and quite frankly as I talked about it, it was an act of barbarism; the assassination of a 9-year-old child as a gang retaliation to get back at his father,” Police Supt. Garry McCarthy said Friday morning.

Corey Morgan (Credit: Cook County Sheriff)

Tyshawn, who was in fourth grade, was shot multiple times at close range with a .40-caliber weapon, after being lured into an alley at 80th and Damen, near his grandmother’s house, on Nov. 2. Police have said Tyshawn was lured into the alley, and executed, because of his father’s gang ties, and a recent series of shootings between rival gangs. 

McCarthy said at least three suspects were involved in the “unfathomable crime.” A second suspect, who McCarthy did not name, was in custody on an unrelated charge. The third suspect, Kevin Edwards, was wanted for first-degree murder. McCarthy said police have been searching for Edwards for a few weeks, and believe he’s still in the area, but in hiding.

Kevin Edwards (Credit: Chicago Police)

“We believe he’s still in the area. We believe that for a couple reasons. …. He’s definitely underground. He knows we’re looking for him. Everybody knows we’re looking for him,” he said. “He’s turned his back on his family. He’s basically burned bridges in the community with everybody.”

McCarthy would not say which of the three suspects is believed to have pulled the trigger.

Police have said from the start that Tyshawn was killed in retaliation for another gang killing tied to the boy’s father. Investigators have said he was targeted in retribution for the killing of Morgan’s brother, Tracey Morgan, who was gunned down three weeks before Tyshawn was killed. Morgan’s mother was shot in the arm during the attack.

Tyshawn Lee, 9, was fatally shot in the Gresham neighborhood. (courtesy: Karla Lee)

The boy’s father, Pierre Stokes, has repeatedly denied any involvement.

On Friday, McCarthy vowed to destroy both gangs involved.

“I can tell you this. They’re going to be obliterated. That gang just signed its own death warrant, because all along, from day one, when we knew the circumstances of this being gang interaction, I said ‘Prepare the plan. Don’t jeopardize the investigation, but we’re going to go and destroy that gang; and, by the way, the rival gang, too,” McCarthy said. “We’re going to assign resources to ensure that neither one of those gangs can raise its head again.”

The superintendent said detectives got a lot of help from the community during the investigation, even though they had good reason to fear for their own safety by cooperating with police.

“This was very clearly not a case of no snitching, but there was a lot of fear, which is completely understandable. If you have a monster who’s willing to assassinate a 9-year-old, what is that person likely to do if they know that somebody’s cooperating with the case?” McCarthy said.

Morgan has been a person of interest from the start, but McCarthy said police had not questioned him about the killing before his arrest on the murder charge.

Although Morgan was arrested last week on a gun charge, McCarthy said he would not give police a statement about the shooting. The superintendent said Morgan also came in voluntarily before that, with an attorney, but declined to answer any questions about Tyshawn’s murder.

Last week, Morgan and co-defendant Dwight Boone-Doty were arrested for unlawful use of a weapon. Prosecutors said police found each of them with a loaded .40-caliber semiautomatic handgun. A judge set Morgan’s bail at $1 million, and his girlfriend later posted the required $100,000 bond to get him released.