A 19-year-old man from Cary, who is being remembered as a “strong young man” whose personality was “infectious,” died after he was shot multiple times in Chicago Saturday morning.
The Chicago Police Department responded around 2:55 a.m. Saturday to the 69th Street and Komensky Avenue in Chicago for a report of a shooting.
911 callers reported that possibly two people had been shot but officers arrived and confirmed that only one person was shot, according to police radio traffic.
Officers reported he had been shot in the abdomen and in the lower back. He was critically injured.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Giovannie E. Vargas, 19, of Cary. His family spelled his first name as Giovanni.
Witnesses told officers that the suspect fled in a red convertible northbound on Pulaski Road from 69th Street after the shooting.
The Chicago Police Department said in a statement that Vargas was standing outside in the residential area in the 4000 block of West 69th Street.
Vargas suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the lower back, police officials said.
An ambulance transported Vargas to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn where he was pronounced dead.
A preliminary investigation indicates that the gunman may have been traveling in a vehicle when the shooting occurred, police officials said.
No other victims were found to be shot and the incident remains under investigation by Chicago Police Area One Detectives.
Celia Vargas, the man’s mother, said Vargas was a son, a brother, a lover and more. “Our hearts are heavy at the passing of our strong young man.”
Vargas aspired to be a barber and was attending Cosmetology & Spa Academy’s barber school.
“He was determined, motivated, making everyone proud at his efforts. His smile— an expression that leads you to smile back. Infectious, to put it simply,” Celia Vargas said.
“His smile radiated with love, he had a fire that burned so bright. He gave so much, he was selfless. He was the joyful breath of fresh air that we all could use more of. His personality was infectious, he was hysterical without trying, a heart as big as can be and a smile that lit up a room,” she said.
A fundraiser account has raised over $10,000 for the family to deal with the unexpected funeral costs as a result of his death.