Two arrested in Carpentersville drive-by shooting

Police arrested two suspected street gang members Wednesday on charges they participated in a Nov. 13 drive-by shooting outside the Carpentersvile home of rival gang members.

Hugo A. Nolasco, 21, 923 N. Palos Ave., Palatine, was charged with two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm in connection with the shooting in the 0-100 block of Birch Street, court records state. The charges are Class X felonies punishable by up tp 30 years in prison.

Edwin Hernandez, 17, 7021 Lowell Drive, Carpentersville, was charged with possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition, both without firearm owner identification cards.

Police said two brothers, both admitted street gang members, were standing in front of their home Nov. 13 when they were shot at three or four times from a dark-colored vehicle. Neither was hit, and they were able to identify two occupants of the car because the vehicle had been driving up and down their street many times that day, police said.

Police arrested Nolasco after one of the victims identified the car involved in the shooting parked in a driveway in the 300 block of Wakefield Drive.

He later admitted he was the shooter in the Nov. 13 drive-by and identified Hernandez, a junior at Dundee-Crown High School, as the driver, police said.

The shooting came in apparent retaliation for the two brothers throwing either bottles or rocks at Nolasco's car earlier on Nov. 13, causing damage to its rear, police said.

When Carpentersville officers searched Hernandez' room Wednesday, police said, they found a Ruger .45-caliber handgun, which they believe is the weapon used in the shooting, along with two loaded magazines holding a total of nine .45-caliber bullets.

Nolasco's bond was set at ten percent of one million dollars and the bond for Hernandez was ten percent of $250,000.

Both were taken to the Kane County jail Thursday. Nolasco's next court date is on Nov. 26 and Hernandez is scheduled to be in court Dec. 4.