Authorities have arrested one person in connection with the shooting death of an Uber driver. Police said that Joseph Schelstraete, 38, was approached by four male suspects while he was waiting to pick up a passenger in Cicero, Illinois.
The group entered his vehicle and demanded his money and cellphone, in addition to his car. Schelstraete complied with their demands, but they shot in the head anyway. The group then fled the scene.
Schelstraete was rushed to the hospital in serious condition. Doctors were unable to save him, and he was pronounced the following day.
"He was just out trying to make a dollar," Cicero Police Chief Jerry Chlada Jr. said at a news conference. "He truly is a victim — just in the wrong place at the wrong time, unfortunately. By all accounts that we can tell, he's just a hard-working guy."
Witnesses were able to describe the individuals and told officers which way they fled. Officials arrested a juvenile suspect about two blocks from the scene and are still trying to identify and locate the other three suspects, who are considered to be armed and dangerous. They did not release his identity or what charges he was facing. It is unclear if the person in custody is the one accused of shooting Schelstraete.
There was a carjacking at the same intersection a few weeks ago, and investigators are trying to determine if they are connected.
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