Executive Summary
- Damon Kellum, 45, was found shot to death in Chicago’s Oakland neighborhood.
- Authorities located a vehicle near the body matching one stolen in a deadly carjacking hours earlier.
- The earlier carjacking in Lakeview resulted in the death of a 22-year-old man.
- Police are investigating a potential link between the two fatal shootings.
CHICAGO – Authorities have identified Damon Kellum, 45, as the man found shot to death on the South Side of Chicago near a vehicle associated with a separate fatal carjacking reported earlier this week. According to the Chicago Police Department, the discovery was made Wednesday morning in the Oakland neighborhood, prompting an investigation into a potential connection between the two violent incidents.
Kellum was found suffering from a gunshot wound to the head near East 37th Street and South Lake Park Avenue around 5 a.m. Wednesday. Investigators at the scene located a vehicle nearby that matched the description of an automobile stolen during a deadly carjacking in the Lakeview neighborhood earlier that same morning.
The initial incident occurred approximately an hour earlier, around 3:45 a.m., at West Waveland Avenue and North Halsted Street. Police reports indicate that a 22-year-old man was sitting in his car with a 38-year-old passenger when two individuals approached the vehicle. The assailants allegedly carjacked the driver and shot him before fleeing in his automobile. The 22-year-old victim was pronounced dead, while the 38-year-old passenger was uninjured. The identity of the Lakeview victim has not been publicly released.
Law enforcement officials have not yet confirmed if the two shootings are definitively linked, though the recovery of the stolen vehicle near the second crime scene is a primary focus of the inquiry. It is important to note that the investigation is ongoing, and all potential suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Investigative Outlook
The proximity of the recovered stolen vehicle to a second homicide scene presents a critical line of inquiry for detectives attempting to trace the suspects’ movements across the city. Investigators are expected to rely heavily on forensic evidence gathered from the vehicle and ballistic comparisons to determine if the same perpetrators are responsible for both fatalities. The case underscores the operational challenges in tracking violent crime sprees that traverse multiple police districts within a short timeframe.
