The first homicide of 2023 in Chicago occurred 90 minutes into the New Year when a 38-year-old male was shot to death at a hookah lounge, CWB Chicago reported, citing police.
The shooting occurred at around 1:30 a.m. on New Year’s Day at the Lyon’s Den hookah bar on the 2100 block of W. Division Street in the Ukrainian Village neighborhood.
According to police, an unknown suspect tried entering the establishment by force while “brandishing a handgun.”
A shootout ensued with the alleged offender and two men. During the gun battle, a 38-year-old victim was shot in the left leg, abdomen, and shoulder and was rushed to a local hospital where he later died of his injuries.
The victim was identified as Austin McAllister, a father of six who worked as a bouncer at the lounge, according to ABC 7.
Another victim, a 26-year-old man, was reportedly shot in the left calf and is in “good condition” at the hospital.
The suspect who escaped is a black male who is between 5’11” and 6’0″ tall and weighs between 180 and 190 pounds, according to an officer who reviewed surveillance footage from the lounge, per CWB Chicago. The gunman was also wearing a blue sweater over a light blue shirt, black jeans, and white shoes.
Surveillance footage also captured the suspect entering a “light-colored SUV” and speeding westbound on Division Street following the crime.
According to the Chicago Journal, this is the first homicide to have occurred in the 2023 calendar year.
At least 30 people were shot, seven fatally — including the 38-year-old hookah lounge victim — over the New Year’s weekend in Democrat-controlled Chicago, Breitbart News reported.
Furthermore, there were at least 723 homicides that occurred in the Windy City in 2022.
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