Two more suspects have been charged in connection with a shootout in Beach Park that left a man dead and one of the suspects has been ordered held on a $5 million bond for also selling gun conversion kits.
Anthony McCullough, 20, of Zion, was charged with one count of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.
Shelton L. Sherrod, 22, of Zion, was charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said Sherrod and McCullough possessed guns during a shooting that occurred around 1:15 p.m. on July 26, 2022, in the 38900 block of North Lewis Avenue in Beach Park.
Investigators learned that Jaziya K. Bankston, 22, of Waukegan, and Dishelle Y. Flores, 21, of North Chicago, Christopher Williams, 22, of North Chicago, met with another person in the parking lot of a business in the strip mall.
The four spoke for a period of time when an argument ensued, Covelli said.
Prosecutors said the meetup was a drug deal involving the sale of cannabis.
Bankston admitted to setting up the drug deal, prosecutors said.
One of the suspects who was inside a vehicle fired numerous shots at the group, striking them while they were also in their vehicle, Covelli said.
At least one of the three subjects fired shots back at the fourth suspect.
Both vehicles fled the scene. Bankston, Flores and Williams were found in their car on the side of the road at Wadsworth Road and Gabriel Avenue in Beach Park.
All three were transported to area hospitals by ambulance.
Williams was transported in critical condition and Bankston was in serious condition.
Flores suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Williams later died at Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan.
Flores and Bankston were arrested in August.
Prosecutors said that 188 grams of cannabis were found in the car that Bankston, Flores and Williams were inside.
Prosecutors said that Flores threw a loaded gun out the window after the shooting.
A second loaded gun was found inside their car. Bankston, who has a revoked Firearm Owners Identification card, admitted to possessing that firearm, prosecutors said.
Bankston and Flores were both charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and delivery of cannabis.
“Our investigative team worked tenaciously to hold everyone accountable in this case. All of those arrested are extremely violent people, especially the offender who was selling machinegun converters. The members of our office will continue working tirelessly to arrest those who use guns and violence to prey on others,” Lake County Sheriff John Idleburg said.
McCullough is in the custody of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections on an unrelated charge and will be extradited to Lake County following his Wisconsin prison sentence.
Members of the Lake County Sheriff’s Special Investigations Group, which includes the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Chicago Field Division, acquired machine gun conversion devices, also known as auto sears, from Sherrod.
Sheriff’s detectives and members of SIG arrested Sherrod on Friday and recovered 12 additional auto-sears, a semi-automatic pistol that was converted into a machine gun using an auto-sear and numerous rounds of ammunition.
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office approved additional charges against Sherrod including unlawful possession of a weapon, 28 counts of unlawful possession of a weapon and unlawful possession of firearm by a felon.
A judge on Saturday ordered him held on a $5 million bond.
While Bankston, Flores, McCullough and Sherrod have all been charged with possessing guns during the incident, none of them have been charged with firing shots despite the sheriff’s office saying multiple people fired guns.