Flanked by personnel in the Chicago Police Department Bureau of Detectives, Supt. Larry Snelling speaks during a news conference at CPD headquarters on the South Side, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024.
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
A 36-year-old west suburban man has been charged with killing an unarmed security guard Friday at an Austin dollar store where the suspect once worked and then shooting at Chicago police officers in south suburban Dolton on Saturday.
Rodgerick O’Neal of Maywood was charged with first-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder, three counts of aggravated battery against a police officer and six counts of resisting arrest, Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling said during a news conference on Tuesday morning.
O’Neal allegedly fatally shot Loyce Wright, 43, around 1:30 p.m. on Friday while Wright was working as a security guard at a Family Dollar store, 5410 W. Chicago Ave. Wright later died at Stroger Hospital, according to police.
On Saturday, O’Neal was taken into custody in Dolton after exchanging gunfire with Chicago police officers, according to police. He was arrested in the 15200 block of Diekman Court after police received a tip identifying O’Neal and tracked him to Dolton, said Antoinette Ursitti, CPD’s chief of detectives. Detectives also used surveillance footage that they said showed O’Neal near the scene of the shooting.
Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling looks on as Bureau of Detectives Chief Antoinette Ursitti speaks during a news conference at CPD headquarters on the South Side, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
No one was shot, and officers recovered a firearm from O’Neal, police said. At least one officer was placed on routine administrative duties for 30 days, per department policy, as the Civilian Office of Police Accountability investigates the use of force, The police department said on Saturday.
O’Neal previously worked at the Family Dollar, and the shooting likely stemmed from an argument between O’Neal and Wright, Ursitti said.
Wright’s family remembers him as a “big teddy bear” who always made time for his four daughters, his daughter shared with the Sun-Times.
“I want to extend our deepest condolences to the family of the 43-year-old victim. He was simply at the store and doing his job when his life was tragically taken from him,” Snelling said. “This was truly a department wide effort to apprehend the suspect … They all did what they could to bring justice to this case and the victim’s family.”