Evanston woman dies one week after Chicago gunman shot her in crime spree
Daily file photo by Daniel Tian
EPD vehicles. EPD and EFD responded to a triple shooting Friday that left two men dead and one with non-life threatening injuries.
January 17, 2021
Resident Marta Torres died in St. Francis Hospital Saturday evening a week after she was shot as a hostage in an Evanston IHOP, 100 Asbury Ave., authorities confirmed.
The 61-year-old woman was the latest to die in the wake of 32-year-old gunman Jason Nightengale’s crime spree that stretched from Chicago to Evanston Jan 9. Nightengale shot and killed four people and left at least three others in critical condition that day in a pattern police said was random.
Evanston Police Department arrived on the scene before Nightengale shot Torres in the face after receiving a 5:38 call of shots fired at CVS Pharmacy, 101 Asbury Ave, Evanston Police Chief Demitrous Cook said. EPD sergeant Kenneth Carter said preliminary investigations indicate Nightengale was attempting to rob the CVS. Cook said Nightengale then fled across the street into the IHOP, where he took Torres hostage and shot her.
Officers shot and killed Nightengale that evening after Nightengale ran from IHOP to the Dollar General parking lot.
“At this time we are still uncertain as to what motivated Jason Nightengale to commit these heinous crimes,” a Thursday EPD news release said.
Earlier that day, at around 1:50 p.m., police said Nightengale shot and killed a 30-year-old University of Chicago student sitting in his vehicle. About half an hour later, Nightengale shot and killed a 46-year-old apartment building security guard in the 4900 block of South East End Avenue.
Nightengale also shot a 77-year-old woman checking her mail, who is now in critical condition. Nightengale stole a vehicle, then shot and killed a man in the 9300 block of South Halsted Street.
An 81-year-old woman was shot in the back and neck and is now in critical condition. Around 5 p.m. last Saturday, Nightengale shot a 15-year-old girl in the 10300 block of South Halsted, who is now in critical condition.
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