Two members of the Twisted Image
Motorcycle Club and a member of the Knight Keepers MC were attacked by
members of the American Knights Motorcycle Club as they tried to enter a
Chicago bar called Zachary’s For Cocktails about 4 a.m. Sunday. And,
the official coverup started immediately.
The American Knights has chapters in
Chicago and Joliet, Illinois. According to the club’s website, it is
“comprised of active and retired law enforcement officers, military, and
qualified civilians who support the goals of law enforcement. The club
promotes brotherhood and the sport of motorcycle riding. The American
Knights Motorcycle Club of Chicago has been honored three times by the
Chicago City Council for outstanding charity work in the city of
Chicago. Our main focus as a club is brotherhood, promoting motorcycle
riding, and various fundraising activities for Police, Military, and
many other charities.”
All three of the victims are military
veterans. One is a former Airman, another a former Marine and the third
is a former Army Ranger.
Anybody Know Tower
After American Knights Physically denied
the three victims entry to the bar in a Chicago neighborhood called
Jefferson Park, they were shot by an American Knight who emerged from
the bar. Multiple sources have identified the shooter as an
intoxicated, off-duty Chicago police officer whose name in his club is
“Tower.” One victim was shot in the thigh, a second was shot in the back
and the third was shot in the chest. A witness said at least five shots
were fired.
Police initially issued a press release
that said the three victims “were outside in front of Zachary’s For
Cocktails in the 5300 block of North Milwaukee Avenue when they began
fighting with several other males. A gunman emerged from a lounge and
fired shots.” The press release was removed from the Chicago Police
media notification system after the Chicago Tribune published an interview with one of the victims, Roberto Ramos.
“People were running and the guy was
shooting and aiming at people and people were just running off in
different ways,” Ramos told the Tribune. “I got up to see who
was the guy who tackled me. That’s when I realized the guy was already
shooting and had already shot people. I tried talking to my friend – he
was like, ‘I can’t feel my legs;’ my brother-in-law was down the block,
laying on the ground also. He was shot.”
Media in Chicago, including the Tribune’s initial cove rage and coverage on other media outlets like WGN and CBS placed the shooting in the context of “Four dead, 35 wounded in weekend shootings in Chicago.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, no one has been arrested in connection with the shooting. The Tribune reports “the case remains under investigation.”
There is a GoFundMe page to cover the legal and medical expenses of the most seriously wounded victim.
