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Shooting suspects arrested
Alleged gunman charged in death of Keyana Bates
By Josh Adams
Special Forest Park Review
Web Extra! Updated 6/23/2009 1:49 p.m.
Two men believed to be responsible for the June 15 shooting death of
Keyana Bates have been taken into custody, according to Police Chief
Jim Ryan, and first-degree murder charges were filed against the man
suspected of pulling the trigger.
Darrell J. Topps, 29, of Bellwood, is facing a single count of
first-degree murder for allegedly killing Bates outside a Forest Park
apartment building at the corner of Dunlop and York streets. Topps
was also charged with two counts of attempted murder, said Ryan, for
firing 15 rounds in the direction of two 19-year-old males who were in
the car with Bates when she was shot. The driver of the car was struck
once in the left shoulder. He was released from an area hospital that
night.
Police also sought first-degree murder charges against the man they
said drove Topps to Forest Park, but the Cook Count state's attorney's
office did not approve those charges, said Ryan. That individual,
24-year-old Tristan Agee, of Maywood, was charged with resisting
arrest, which stems from when he was taken into custody June 19.
Agee is also wanted by the Cook County Sheriff's Police for resisting
arrest, and was on parole for a narcotics arrest, according to police.
Topps has an extensive criminal background that includes 12
convictions for weapons charges.
Two other men are believed to have been passengers in Agee's
vehicle at the time of the shooting, said Ryan. Detectives are "still
working on that" aspect of the investigation, he said.
"Obviously, only one person pulled the trigger," Ryan said.
Both Topps and Agee were arrested Friday evening, June 19, after
Forest Park detectives and members of a west suburban gang task
force followed the suspects through Chicago to a Burger King
restaurant. Investigators had received word about the vehicle allegedly
used in the shooting and set up surveillance. The car was followed to a
Chicago apartment near the intersection of North and Kilpatrick, where
Topps got into the car, said Ryan. Detectives continued to track the
suspect to the fast food restaurant and waited to make the arrest when
the individuals came back to the vehicle.
The day after the June 15 shooting, investigators began to focus their
attention on a short list of suspects identified through witness accounts
that included conversations with the two men who were traveling with
Bates. Ryan credited his detectives for logging long hours and tracking
the alleged triggerman with little more than a nickname to begin their
search.
"They were tenacious to say the least," Ryan said.
Bates, 18, of Maywood, was shot multiple times as she sat in a car
parked outside of 837 Dunlop. Authorities do not believe she was the
intended target. Rather, she was caught in a hail of gunfire aimed at
taking out the driver. Police have not identified the individual who was
driving the car Bates was traveling in.
Topps and Bates' companion belong to rival gangs, said Ryan, and
have feuded before. In July 2008, Topps shot the same individual while
he was driving on the Eisenhower Expressway.
"Our victim, it's a tragedy," Ryan said. "She definitely was in the wrong
place at the wrong time."
Police also believe they have figured out why Bates and her friends
were traveling to Forest Park the night they were shot. According to
Ryan, the boyfriend of a woman who recently moved into an upstairs
apartment at the address was friends with the victims. Police said the
boyfriend had not signed a lease for the property and was staying
there unbeknownst to the landlord.
"That's since been resolved," Ryan said.
Alleged gunman charged in death of Keyana Bates
By Josh Adams
Special Forest Park Review
Web Extra! Updated 6/23/2009 1:49 p.m.
Two men believed to be responsible for the June 15 shooting death of
Keyana Bates have been taken into custody, according to Police Chief
Jim Ryan, and first-degree murder charges were filed against the man
suspected of pulling the trigger.
Darrell J. Topps, 29, of Bellwood, is facing a single count of
first-degree murder for allegedly killing Bates outside a Forest Park
apartment building at the corner of Dunlop and York streets. Topps
was also charged with two counts of attempted murder, said Ryan, for
firing 15 rounds in the direction of two 19-year-old males who were in
the car with Bates when she was shot. The driver of the car was struck
once in the left shoulder. He was released from an area hospital that
night.
Police also sought first-degree murder charges against the man they
said drove Topps to Forest Park, but the Cook Count state's attorney's
office did not approve those charges, said Ryan. That individual,
24-year-old Tristan Agee, of Maywood, was charged with resisting
arrest, which stems from when he was taken into custody June 19.
Agee is also wanted by the Cook County Sheriff's Police for resisting
arrest, and was on parole for a narcotics arrest, according to police.
Topps has an extensive criminal background that includes 12
convictions for weapons charges.
Two other men are believed to have been passengers in Agee's
vehicle at the time of the shooting, said Ryan. Detectives are "still
working on that" aspect of the investigation, he said.
"Obviously, only one person pulled the trigger," Ryan said.
Both Topps and Agee were arrested Friday evening, June 19, after
Forest Park detectives and members of a west suburban gang task
force followed the suspects through Chicago to a Burger King
restaurant. Investigators had received word about the vehicle allegedly
used in the shooting and set up surveillance. The car was followed to a
Chicago apartment near the intersection of North and Kilpatrick, where
Topps got into the car, said Ryan. Detectives continued to track the
suspect to the fast food restaurant and waited to make the arrest when
the individuals came back to the vehicle.
The day after the June 15 shooting, investigators began to focus their
attention on a short list of suspects identified through witness accounts
that included conversations with the two men who were traveling with
Bates. Ryan credited his detectives for logging long hours and tracking
the alleged triggerman with little more than a nickname to begin their
search.
"They were tenacious to say the least," Ryan said.
Bates, 18, of Maywood, was shot multiple times as she sat in a car
parked outside of 837 Dunlop. Authorities do not believe she was the
intended target. Rather, she was caught in a hail of gunfire aimed at
taking out the driver. Police have not identified the individual who was
driving the car Bates was traveling in.
Topps and Bates' companion belong to rival gangs, said Ryan, and
have feuded before. In July 2008, Topps shot the same individual while
he was driving on the Eisenhower Expressway.
"Our victim, it's a tragedy," Ryan said. "She definitely was in the wrong
place at the wrong time."
Police also believe they have figured out why Bates and her friends
were traveling to Forest Park the night they were shot. According to
Ryan, the boyfriend of a woman who recently moved into an upstairs
apartment at the address was friends with the victims. Police said the
boyfriend had not signed a lease for the property and was staying
there unbeknownst to the landlord.
"That's since been resolved," Ryan said.