Chicago police arrested at least 18 people during Mexican Independence Day festivities last weekend, according to court records, with seven of those arrests on gun possession charges. Five of the people confronted with firearms come from the suburbs.
The CPD did not know how many arrests its officers made during the various festivities, which spanned many parts of the city from Friday evening through Monday evening. The total number of arrests is believed to be significantly higher, and CWBChicago will update our reporting as additional data becomes available from CPD and the courts.
The most serious charges involve accusations of illegal gun possession:
- Police arrested Normando Riquelme, 33, of Chicago, during the 26th Street Mexican Independence Day Parade on Sunday afternoon. According to his arrest report, Riquelme was part of a group of approximately fifteen to twenty men who suddenly dispersed, and police observed Riquelme holding a heavy object in his pants pocket and wearing a T-shirt with a cracked Latin King crown and the word “Regicide,” the report said. Officers stopped him and reportedly found a loaded revolver in his pocket. The report said that “several known Two-Six gang members began throwing glass bottles at them” as they led Riquelme to a police car. While on patrol, officers reportedly found another firearm in his possession, a small .25-caliber pistol with a 2-inch barrel. He is charged with two counts of unlawful use of a weapon and a misdemeanor assault. Prosecutors did not ask Judge William Fahy to detain him.
- Police arrested Daniel Bueno Carranza, 40, of Hoffman Estates, in the 2500 block of South Spaulding around 10:08 p.m. Sunday, on a charge of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Officers noticed a gun in his waistband as he leaned over to prevent people from fighting within a large group, according to his arrest report. Judge Deidre Dyer denied a state detention request and opted to send Carranza home under electronic monitoring.
- Irving Diaz, 23, of Berwyn, is also charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Police said they were patrolling the 2500 block of South Harding “due to community concerns regarding the safety of the Mexican Independence Day Parade” when they noticed a “heavy object” in Diaz’s bag. According to Diaz’s arrest report, the object was a loaded 9-millimeter handgun that had been reported stolen. He was on probation at the time for the first time he seized a gun for another case, prosecutors said in a warrant. Judge William Fahy granted the detention request.
- Late Saturday night, police arrested Anthony Hernandez, 19, of Arlington Heights, in the 3900 block of South Archer. Chicago police stopped a Chevy Malibu “with a large flag outside [the] Passenger side window…obstructs driver’s view.” During the stop, officers reportedly found a loaded ghost gun in a purse on the side of Hernandez. Authorities have charged him with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Prosecutors did not want him arrested.
- Sunday around 10:30 p.m., police arrested Joceylin Lara, 18, of Waukegan, in the 800 block of West Lake. Officers said they stopped an SUV for “hanging out the front passenger seat window.” Before complying with officers’ commands to get out of the car, Lara gave a bag containing a gun to a backseat passenger, according to her arrest report. Lara said “in an excited expression” that she had the firearm “for protection,” the report said. Lara faces two charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Prosecutors did not want her arrested.
- In a somewhat similar scenario, police stopped an SUV carrying 18-year-old Adrian Ramirez of Berwyn because passengers were reportedly hanging out of windows early Sunday morning in the 200 block of North Halsted. While talking to the passengers, an officer saw a firearm under Ramirez’s leg, according to a CPD report. The driver of the SUV tried to drive away and escape but became stuck in traffic, police said. By then, the gun had been moved from under Ramirez’s leg to the glove compartment, the police report said. Judge Susana Ortiz released him under electronic monitoring pending trial on two counts of unlawful use of a weapon.
- Officers assigned to Mexican Independence Day activities arrested 21-year-old Antonio Rosales during an illegal street takeover near Archer and Hamlin around 1 a.m. Monday. Rosales was standing in the street adjusting a “heavy object” in his athletic pants, according to a CPD report. Rosales retreated to a nearby car. When police ordered him out of the vehicle, the gun fell to the ground, according to the report. Judge William Fahy released Rosales under a curfew. Another man was charged with disorderly conduct for blocking traffic during the takeover.
A ‘chaotic scene’ in the Loop
On Saturday around 10 p.m., police arrested two men after a “chaotic scene unfolded” in the Loop. According to arrest reports for Leonard and Alberto Heredia, the men were part of a large crowd walking down the middle of Wacker Drive near Dearborn, refusing to leave the street.
According to the reports, the “chaotic” events began when the men and two officers fell to the ground during a struggle. [officers] Alcohol was thrown on them and fireworks were set off all around them.”
Leonard, 19, is charged with two counts of resisting and obstructing traffic. Alberto, 23, is charged with both resisting and obstructing traffic.
Other arrests
Other Mexican Independence Day-related arrests identified by CWBChicago included men from Elgin, Niles and Chicago, charged with misdemeanor assault; three men charged with felonies after a gang disturbance near 26th and Sawyer; and a woman charged with misdemeanor assault.
In non-weapon arrests, two people were charged with aggravated battery of peace officers stemming from incidents in the Loop: a Chicago woman on Saturday and an Evanston man on Sunday.
