LITTLE VILLAGE — A 19-year-old man has been charged in the November shooting of a nurse in Little Village.
On Thursday, Armando Lopez, 19, was charged with first-degree murder for allegedly shooting Frank Aguilar, a 32-year-old nurse from Little Village, police said.
Charges have yet to be filed against another individual believed to be involved in the shooting, police said.
At 11:30 p.m. Nov. 12, Aguilar was walking in the 3700 block of West 32nd Street when a passing car fired shots, striking the Little Village nurse, police said.
Aguilar was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital where he was pronounced dead, officials said.
During a press conference, 10th District Police Captain Gilberto Calderon commended the Little Village community for “standing up for the community and… providing information that proved vital” to this case.
“The tragic murder of Frankie Aguilar rocked this community,” Calderon said. “Here’s a man who is working hard to get ahead in life. Unfortunately, this promising life was cut short on Nov. 12, when the gang violence robbed another individual who had a promising future.”
Following Aguilar’s death, Calderon said neighbors provided tips and video footage that helped lead to Lopez arrest.
Calderon acknowledged this was not the first time Little Village residents “stepped up to help police.”
On Halloween, a 7-year-old girl trick-or-treating along 26th Street was shot. That led to several tips and calls to the 10th District with information on the shooting, Calderon said.
Neighbors have historically been reticent to speak out, Calderson said, but following the shooting of young girl, Gisele, and Aguilar, residents have put “faith over fear.”
Ahead of the press conference, Chicago Police Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi announced Lopez’s arrest on Twitter, calling the slaying a “senseless murder of…a nurse who dedicated his life to helping those less fortunate.”
“Yet again, the #LittleVillage community stepped up in a big way to help secure these charges.”
According to the Sun-Times, Lopez was previously arrested days after the shooting after leading police in a car chase that started in Little Village before ending in crash in Chatham.