A gunman who allegedly opened fire during a shooting that left two young adults wounded outside an apartment building in Waukegan last month has been arrested.
The Waukegan Police Department and Waukegan Fire Department responded around 9:50 p.m. on March 30 to the Lakeside Tower Apartments, 200 Julian Street, for a report of a shooting.
911 dispatchers reported two people were shot at the apartment building and a third victim was across the street in the 400 block of North Genesee Street.
Officers arrived and found two victims who had been shot, according to Waukegan Deputy Police Chief Scott Chastain. A third victim was not located.
One of the victims, a 22-year-old woman, was shot in the stomach and right arm.
She was transported by ambulance to a local hospital where she went into surgery, Chastain said. Her condition was later stabilized.
The second victim, an 18-year-old man, was shot in the leg.
He was transported by ambulance to a local hospital and was also listed as stable in the hospital.
The two victims were outside of the apartment building when they were shot, Chastain said.
Chastain said the woman may have been in a car and the man was possibly on foot when the gunfire rang out. It is not believed they were together during the shooting.
A pickup truck parked outside of Lakeside Tower had been struck by gunfire and was towed from the scene.
Gunfire also struck the front of the apartment building, shattering the glass windows of the front lobby.
Crime scene tape was set up around the front of the building, including the parking garage entrance.
Court records show detectives obtained a warrant for the arrest of 18-year-old Nazir Plaines on April 11, less than two weeks after the shooting.
Prosecutors approved charges against Plaines for aggravated battery with a firearm, a Class X felony, and aggravated discharge of a firearm, a Class 1 felony.
Plaines was arrested and transported to the Lake County Jail on Sunday.
Prosecutors said Plaines was walking behind two unknown individuals when he pulled out a gun and began shooting at the occupied pickup truck, striking the female victim in the stomach.
The warrant did not allege that Plaines shot the male victim and it is unclear whether police are still seeking additional suspects.
Prosecutors said Plaines is a convicted felon from a 2023 juvenile case and has several other prior criminal cases, including for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.
Plaines, who is being held in the Lake County Jail, is scheduled to appear for a detention hearing on Tuesday.