Chicago gang leader allegedly behind mass shooting previously released on $100 bail

A shootout on Tuesday by two rival gangs in Chicago left one person dead and four others injured. The police chief told reporters on Wednesday that the department believes the gunfight was a retaliation strike by one gang leader, in an act of revenge for his brother’s death.

The suspect, Sergio Barron, was previously released from prison on federal parole and only three days later was arrested again on other charges. He was then released after posting only $100 bail.

Superintendent David O. Brown informed the press conference attendees that they’re working on attempting to revoke Barron’s bond, and is described as a "high-ranking member" of one of the gangs.

When police arrived at Tuesday's shootout location, "gang members began assaulting police officers there trying to establish some community safety there, after the shooting ensued. Obviously the crime scene is trying to be protected as well for the investigation" said Brown.

CNN added that "private video taken from the scene" shows a vehicle fleeing, and crashing several blocks away. Authorities are still looking for the occupants of that car.

Two gang members were arrested for battering police officers. Barron is believed to be behind Tuesday’s shooting because of what Superintendent Brown described as an escalating pattern of gang violence between these two groups since April, when Barron’s brother was killed.

According to CWBChicago, Barron received eight years as a sentence for a case of aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated assault of a police officer in 2017.

He was released into federal parole on March 24, 2022, after spending three years in a federal penitentiary, according to Superintendent Brown.

But only three days later, Barron found himself in front of a Cook County bond court on a new felony gun charge. Police responded "to a ShotSpotter alert on the 4800 block of South Loomis," according to CWB. At the scene they found Barron reversing his vehicle, and authorities found a gun when they searched the suspect’s car.

Barron admitted that the gun was his. Prosecutors charged him with unlawful possession, in addition to possession of a controlled substance. Judge Maryam Ahmad let Barron free after posting 10 percent of a $1,000 bail deposit, as that’s reportedly as much as the defendant could afford, according to his public defender.

Far-left progressive lenient bail policies have been subject to criticism in recent months across the US in cities including; Los Angeles and New York.