Man charged with firing gun near bar in Beach Park

A 22-year-old North Chicago man is accused of firing a gun into the air several times early Saturday.

Danis Nunez-Bonilla has been charged with four counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, and reckless discharge of a firearm.

At about 1:50 a.m., a Lake County sheriff’s deputy was in the area of a Beach Park bar on the 37800 block of North Sheridan Road during closing time. The deputy heard multiple gunshots from the parking lot area of the bar, and he informed other deputies of the situation over the radio, according to the sheriff’s office.

Another deputy in the area saw a white work van quickly leave the bar’s parking lot. The deputy conducted a traffic stop and spoke to the driver, identified as Nunez-Bonilla, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

While speaking to him, deputies found he was in possession of a 9 mm pistol with an extended magazine, the release stated. They also located several discharged shell casings both in the van and an additional 11 discharged shell casings near the bar.

Deputies believe he fired the gun in an act of celebration, the sheriff’s office said.

Nunez-Bonilla remains held in the Lake County jail pending an initial court hearing.