Funeral services are set for this weekend for a 15-year-old girl who died after she was shot by a stray bullet while eating dinner at her Round Lake Beach home last week.
The homicide happened around 9:10 p.m. Wednesday in the 1500 block of Cherokee Drive in Round Lake Beach.
Lake County Major Crime Task Force Spokesman Christopher Covelli said Round Lake Beach officers arrived and found a 15-year-old girl, later identified as Valeria Rodriguez, 15, of Round Lake Beach, who had suffered a gunshot wound inside a residence.
A preliminary investigation shows a person fired a gun outside near the home, Covelli said.
A stray bullet shot from the firearm entered Rodriguez’s home and struck her.
Covelli said Rodriguez was transported by ambulance to an area hospital where she was pronounced dead.
The family of Rodriguez told WGN earlier last week that the girl was sitting down to eat dinner when she was shot.
“It does not appear the victim was the intended target of the shooting,” Covelli said.
A neighbor who spoke to Lake and McHenry County Scanner said they heard an explosion or bang and then the mother of the victim screaming and yelling because her daughter had been injured.
Multiple neighbors described the gunshot as being similar to a firework.
An autopsy performed showed Rodriguez died as a result of a gunshot wound to the torso, Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek said.
A GoFundMe account has raised over $15,000 for the family’s expenses, including funeral costs.
A food run of tacos to benefit Rodriguez’s family was held on Sunday morning at Greenview Park, which is directly across the street from Rodriguez’s home.
Amber Sanchez, the girl’s cousin, told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that the event was a success and the family is now able to cover the entire cost of the funeral thanks to the fundraising efforts.
“Thank you for all the love and support during this difficult time. Words cannot describe how grateful we are. We are able to put Valeria to rest without the burden of funeral cost,” the family said in a statement.
Funeral services are set for 3-4 p.m. Friday at Justen’s Funeral Home in Round Lake and at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Round Lake.
An obituary for the girl said she was a “beacon of joy and tenderness” who “left this world far too soon.”
“Valeria’s life was a mosaic of love, laughter, and kindness,” the obituary said, adding that she was an “excellent student” at Round Lake High School.
Covelli said investigators conducted a search warrant in the early morning hours on Friday at a home in the 1400 block of Kildeer Drive in Round Lake Beach.
During their search, they located a semi-automatic pistol suspected to be used in the homicide and other evidence, Covelli said.
Shorbonia Poole Jr., 19, who lives at the home where the search warrant was conducted, was arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, a Class 2 felony.
Additional charges are expected in the case, prosecutors said.
Poole is being held in the Lake County Jail pending a detention hearing, which is set for Wednesday afternoon.
U.S. Congressman Brad Schneider, whose district includes Round Lake Beach, called the incident “absolutely devastating news.”
“My heart goes out to the victim’s loved ones reeling from this terrible loss. We have got to get this senseless gun violence out of our communities,” Schneider said.