Antonyo Gipson

Case information

• Defendant: Antonyo Gipson (23), of the 1100 block of North Kedvale Avenue
• Alleged conduct: A Jan. 30 shooting in a Humboldt Park garage involved an attempted robbery of three men who did not speak English.

Timeline

• January 30 — Antonyo Gipson confronted three men near a garage in Humboldt Park and an attempted robbery occurred, followed by a shooting that killed three men and left another man seriously injured.
• February 18, 2006 — Authorities announced that a police dog’s work and DNA evidence linked Antonyo Gipson to the shootings; Antonyo Gipson was described as being charged with three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
• February 19 — Authorities charged Antonyo Gipson, 23, with three counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder, and one drug-related count in the Jan. 30 shooting. Later in Bond Court, Judge Raymond Myles ordered Gipson held without bail.

The offence

Antonyo Gipson fatally shot three neighbors fixing a car in a Humboldt Park garage on January 30 after they did not comply with his demands for money because they did not speak English. The prosecution narrative described that Gipson confronted the men with the intention of robbing them, that the victims did not know what was going on when the robbery was announced, and that the offender started shooting with no provocation. Police said Gipson stole no money in the robbery attempt.

Victims and harm

• Luis Laboy (42) was shot and killed as he was working in his garage near Division Street and Keeler Avenue.
• Emanuel Corona-Cruz (18) was killed in the shooting.
• Jose Corona-Cruz (21) was also killed in the shooting.
• Another man, described as 46 years old was also shot in the incident but survived.
• The case left four children without a father.

Investigation

Authorities used evidence linked by a police canine unit and DNA testing.

• Harrison Area detectives broke the case after the Canine Unit found evidence tied to Gipson.
• The nos of a dog in the unit followed a scent to a bandana that was later linked to Gipson’s residence.
• DNA evidence found on a bandana near the crime scene tied Gipson to the murders.

Police dog and evidence discovery

The bandana was discovered by 8-year-old Denny, a German Shepard police dog. Denny picked up on the scent and led his handler to the key piece of evidence.

Officer Rick King of the Chicago Police Dept. said:

"All of a sudden as we're going down the alley he made a hard left. I followed him in the this dark gangway, I noticed something on the ground he's sniffing it and it's this bandana,"

Jose Vargas, victim's stepson, said:

"I'm glad they caught him but then I wish I could have been the one to have caught him because just like my mom said we want to tell him what he took from us my dad was a big part of the family,"

Arrest and court proceedings

Antonyo Gipson was charged and held pending further proceedings.

• Authorities charged Gipson with three counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder, and one drug-related count in the Jan. 30 shooting.

Charges

• Three counts of first-degree murder
• One count of attempted murder
• One drug-related count

Aftermath

The shooting left four children without a father. Jose Vargas, the oldest of Laboy’s four children, described the difficulty of explaining to his siblings that their father was never coming back. Police said Gipson was accused in an attempted robbery in which the victims did not speak English and did not understand what was happening when the robbery was announced.