A Chicago man accused of a shooting spree that wounded two, including a police officer, reportedly said he was trying to “lure” police into an ambush.
Tracey Thomas Jr. was hit with five felony counts of attempted murder of a police officer after his arrest on Saturday. The 29-year-old allegedly shot a Chicago Police officer in the hand and also wounded a civilian. He has not yet been charged for the civilian’s injuries, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
The shooting incident began around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday when investigators say that Thomas took a shot at a random person on a bicycle but missed. Minutes later, Thomas allegedly shot a man in the rear end.
Police soon responded. According to ABC 7, a witness said he heard the gunfire.
“I was taking my dog out in the backyard. All of a sudden, I heard these shots back here. I took my dog in the house, and I ran to the front door and saw all the police cars,” the witness said.
Once police arrived, Thomas reportedly fired on the officers, shot one officer in the hand, and burrowed a bullet into a police car. He then barricaded himself in a building for several hours.
The Sun-Times reports that assistant state’s attorney James Konstantopoulo said Thomas admitted he shot at civilians in the hopes of luring the Chicago Police into an ambush.
Before the shooting, Thomas was already wanted on a warrant in Cook County for the manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance along with a DuPage County warrant for identity theft. The state’s attorney’s office also said Thomas has two non-violent felony convictions and two misdemeanor convictions on his record.
Judge Arthur Wesley Willis denied bail and ordered Thomas to undergo a mental health examination. The suspect’s next court date is Thursday.
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