Arrest made in Elgin post-party shooting
A Carpentersville man has been charged with aggravated battery in connection with a Jan. 12 shooting that injured five people.
An arrest warrant was issued Jan. 23 for Andrew J. Williams, 25, of the 0-99 block of Middlesex. He turned himself in to Elgin police Friday morning.
Bail has been set at $1 million. He will appear in Kane County bond court Saturday.
According to a news release, detectives from Elgin’s gang crimes unit interviewed more than 50 witnesses.
The shooting happened at 3:10 a.m. on the 300 block of North Street. None of the injuries were life-threatening, according to police. The victims, all Elgin residents, had just left a large party on the 200 block of North.
“We recognized immediately how important it was to make an arrest given the boldness of an individual to fire into a crowd on a public street” Police Chief Jeffrey Swoboda said in the prepared statement. “I am extremely proud of our Gang Unit Detectives and all officers involved who worked so hard and persistently to put this brazen shooter behind bars. We will continue to combat gang crimes aggressively and tenaciously.”
The charges are a class X felony, punishable by a minimum of six to 30 years in prison.
Williams has 2008 and 2008 convictions for misdemeanor criminal trespass to land, according to Kane County court records. He has a 2010 felony conviction for possession of a controlled substance, and is facing 2013 felony charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, possession of a firearm by a gang member and possession of a firearm by a felon.
Elgin police on patrol on the midnight shift have started keeping a closer watch on large parties, and are trying to find out about large gatherings in advance. In particular, they want to know about parties that gang members may attend, and those with underage drinking, Deputy Chief Bill Wolf told the city council earlier this week.
There have been three shootings in Elgin since Dec. 29, two of them after large parties.