CHICAGO — A Venezuelan migrant accused of killing another migrant has been hospitalized after being shot by yet another migrant angry about the killing, officials say. Both shootings occurred at the same Washington Park apartment complex, where a 911 call reporting that armed migrants had taken over the complex was ruled unfounded and labeled as racism by mainstream news channel “experts” in September.
Carlos Reinaldo Maribal-Carvajal, 24, robbed and killed Peter Sangronis-Medina on Nov. 11 at the building in the 6100 block of South Martin Luther King and then hid the body in a trash bin, prosecutors said this weekend.
Maribal-Carvajal robbed Sangronis-Medina of a firearm and then used the gun to kill Sangronis-Medina in the victim’s apartment, according to a criminal complaint. Maribal-Carvajal reportedly left and later returned to the apartment to confirm that Sangronis-Medina was dead. He then dragged Sangronis-Medina’s body outside and threw it over the second-floor balcony into a “intentionally placed dumpster” in hopes of preventing the murder from being discovered, the complaint said.
A GoFundMe campaign for Sangronis-Medina said he was “a hardworking, respectful, family-oriented and loving father who came to America in search of the American dream.” The fundraiser, organized by his employer, said Sangronis-Medina “had no family here,” so they were raising money to “help us get him back home to his family in Venezuela.”
While police meticulously investigated the murder, Chicago’s street justice system was less than patient.
On Nov. 19, eight days after the crime, someone shot Maribal-Carvajal several times from behind in the same apartment building in the 6100 block of South Martin Luther King.
Chicago police officers heard the gunfire and found Maribal-Carvajal seriously injured with a loaded handgun in his waistband, officials said.
Prosecutors quickly charged Henry Brito-Dominguez, 23, with the shooting. During a police interview, Brito-Dominguez allegedly admitted to shooting Maribal-Carvajal because he had killed Sangronis-Medina, according to a CPD report. Brito-Dominguez also claimed he had previously seen Maribal-Carvajal with a gun on the day he shot Maribal-Carvajal, the report said.
Both shootings took place in an apartment building where 911 callers on Labor Day reported “32 Venezuelans” entering the restricted areas and “displaying weapons in the courtyard.” First tweets about the 911 call reported by @spotnewsonigquickly went viral. But CPD said responding officers found no problems when they arrived.
Block Club Chicago published a story the next day was headlined: “No, Armed Venezuelan Migrants Didn’t Take Over a Chicago Apartment Building.” That same day, the Chicago Tribune published its own report: “Experts say anti-immigrant rhetoric has led to viral – and false – accusations of a migrant takeover.”
Maribal-Carvajal is still under police guard in hospital. When detectives visited him at the hospital the day before Thanksgiving, Maribal-Carvajal admitted to shooting Sangronis-Medina after Sangronis-Medina threatened his family, according to a CPD report.
He is charged with first-degree murder, murder, concealment of a homicidal death and armed robbery.
