Aurora man faces charges in shootout with police
A 21-year-old Aurora man faces numerous charges, including four counts of attempted murder, after police say he pointed a gun at undercover officers and then exchanged gunfire with them.
Jorge L. Guzman of the 800 block of Superior Street also was charged with seven counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in connection with the May 24 shooting on the 900 block of Grove Street on Aurora's near east side.
Guzman is being held on $4 million bail at the Kane County Correctional Center in St. Charles.
Authorities said undercover officers were on duty around 10:50 a.m. Wednesday targeting home burglaries and related gang activity on the 900 block of Grove. The officers were in three separate unmarked vehicles and watching a gray 1996 Mitsubishi Lancer as it drove east on Grove.
The car stopped and Guzman got out, ran toward two officers in an unmarked minivan and pointed a handgun at one of them, police said. The other officer rolled down a window and announced they were police.
Guzman initially stumbled backward but then advanced on the officers and pointed his gun at them, police said.
At that point, the officer who rolled down the window fired several rounds at Guzman, who police said returned fire.
Police said Guzman took cover behind a tree and continued firing at the minivan.
Two other officers in another unmarked vehicle also fired at Guzman.
Police said Guzman ran to a 1993 Toyota Corolla that drove up during the confrontation and got into the back seat. Police said the Corolla also was occupied by two other men: the 21-year-old driver and a 20-year-old passenger in the front seat.
The passenger was shot in the leg during the exchange. Police said the driver attempted to flee but backed into a telephone pole at a high rate of speed. All three men inside the car were taken into custody without further incident.
Police said they recovered a gun from the Toyota that Guzman used in the shooting.
Police said the driver of the Mitsubishi, a 15-year-old boy, also fled but was stopped about a block away on the 900 block of Superior, where he was taken into custody. Another man in the vehicle got away on foot, but police say they know his identity.
Another Aurora man, Jose Mondragon, 20, of the 900 block of Fourth Avenue, who police believe fled from the Mitsubishi earlier, was arrested by officers near the scene of the shooting at Ohio Street and Indian Avenue. While Mondragon ultimately was not charged in the shooting, he was charged with a parole violation from the Illinois Department of Corrections.
The other men and the juvenile were released without being charged.
Guzman, Mondragon and the passenger of the Corolla were treated and released from area hospitals for injuries that were not life-threatening. No officers were hit and there were no other injuries.