Chicago man held in weekend shooting of Addison teen
In violence sparked over romantic jealousy, a Chicago man is accused of gunning down an Addison high school senior on the eve of his graduation.
Luis Villavicencio-Serna, 19, was ordered held Wednesday in the DuPage County jail on a $5 million cash bond. Prosecutors charged him with first-degree murder.
Police at 3:33 a.m. Saturday rushed to a 911 call of shots fired in an apartment complex parking lot on the 300 block of Dale Drive in Addison.
Armando Huerta Jr., 18, was conscious, but suffered gunshot wounds to his leg and lower back. The Addison Trail High School student, who lived in the apartment complex, was pronounced dead 14 hours later at Loyola Medical Center in Maywood.
A makeshift memorial remained erected Wednesday outside his apartment, where he lived with his family, including cousin Andres Chavez.
"We're all trying to remain strong," said Chavez, 20. "He was a really shy guy who loved to dance, work out and fix cars. He was counting the days until he graduated and was going to go back to Mexico for a big vacation."
Detectives caught a break in the murder investigation when they searched the slain teen's cellular phone and found a text message from a 16-year-old girl who had warned him to stop calling because it was angering her boyfriend.
Huerta and the girl previously dated, officials said.
"The defendant became angry and jealous with the victim for having continued contact with the defendant's girlfriend," prosecutor Thomas O'Connor told Associate Judge Peter Ostling. "Upon seeing the victim, he has some sort of hostile verbal altercation and then opened fired on him."
Police recovered five bullet casings at the crime scene, but Huerta suffered two gunshot wounds. A bullet in his back left him paralyzed when it severed an artery and ended up lodged in the teen's vertebrae.
Police said no one else is expected to be charged, but their investigation is ongoing.
"We've talked to dozens of witnesses and expect to obtain more information once we are done our search warrants and subpoenas are complete," said Addison police Detective Commander Mark Van Stedum.
He said the violence had "gang undertones," but that the girl was the "common thread" between Huerta and Villavicencio-Serna.
"Armando was never involved in a gang," his cousin, Chavez, said. "He had friends who were gang members a long time ago but we stopped hanging around with them because we didn't want to get into trouble."
Police caught up on Sunday with Villavicencio-Serna at his Chicago workplace. They also interviewed three witnesses who were with the defendant in a Cadillac that morning who said they saw him shoot Huerta. It is alleged the group circled Huerta's complex at least once before the fatal shooting.
Villavicencio-Serna, of the 2300 block of South Hamlin Avenue, Chicago, repeatedly shook his head "no" Wednesday as O'Connor detailed the allegations in bond court. Judge Ostling appointed a DuPage County assistant public defender to represent Villavicencio-Serna, who spoke through a Spanish interpreter.
O'Connor sought the high bond after arguing the defendant poses a flight risk because he is in the country illegally and still has family in Mexico, where he was born.
Huerta is survived by his parents, a 14-year-old brother and infant sister. Chavez said Huerta was born in the U.S., but his remains will be sent back to Mexico, where many relatives live.