Murder was message, prosecutors allege

Matthew C. Cruz didn't care for his little brother hanging out with a rival gang member.

To teach them both a lesson about gang life, prosecutors allege, he unloaded a semiautomatic handgun on the rival in a crowded Addison shopping center.

The brazen shooting -- in broad daylight across the street from the police station -- left 14-year-old Francisco J. Baiza dead and two other teens facing prison terms.

Cruz and Jhony Aragon made their first court appearance Thursday since their arrest. Their hands shackled, the 15-year-old Addison boys looked out at their tearful parents in the courtroom gallery.

DuPage Associate Judge Brian Diamond set bond at $400,000 for Aragon and $500,000 for Cruz. The teens are expected to remain in the county youth home because their families cannot raise the required 10 percent for their release. The judge also appointed the public defender's office to represent them.

They are charged with first-degree murder. The law requires prosecutors to try them as adults -- which means they may face the rest of their lives in prison.

The gunfire rang out about 4 p.m. Tuesday when, witnesses told police, the defendants approached Francisco in the parking lot of the Green Meadows Shopping Center, 110 W. Lake St.

At the time, the unarmed Francisco was with his friends -- including Cruz's younger brother. Francisco was applying for a job in one of the shops but came back outside to retrieve his Social Security card.

Prosecutor Paul Marchese said Cruz accused Francisco of being in a rival gang -- which the Addison Trail High School student denied.

"I'm nothing," he reportedly replied, according to witness statements to police.

Marchese said both defendants then opened fire, each discharging a .25-caliber semiautomatic handgun. Authorities said Aragon's gun fired one bullet, likely toward the ground, as he took it out of a bag. They said Cruz fired three to five times, standing as close as 10 feet from the victim.

Francisco died after being shot three times in the chest and stomach. Police soon tracked down Aragon and Cruz in a nearby apartment complex. They also recovered both handguns in a closet.

Marchese said both teens made videotaped police statements in which they admitted being in a gang and taking part in the shooting, which wasn't planned.

"According to (Cruz), he was not happy to see his little brother hanging out with a rival street gang member," Marchese said. "He said he wanted to show his brother what happens when you join a gang."

Marchese said Aragon also accused Francisco of throwing a bottle or brick at his home earlier that day. Prosecutors said Francisco did not have a criminal past, whereas both the defendants had prior arrests as juveniles.

In fact, DuPage Public Defender Robert Miller said Cruz's mother had sent him out of the country to live with family in an effort to keep him out of trouble. She sat trembling Thursday in court as tears streamed down her face.

Both teens are due back in court Sept. 17.