Chicago police detectives and Cook County Crime Stoppers were seen searching around the Woodlawn neighborhood for new leads on Saturday, only weeks after a mother of five was murdered.
They were also searching for answers in another killing that occurred on the South Side. At this time, no one has been arrested.
Paul Rutherford of Crime Stoppers, along with a half dozen detectives, was out on Drexel Street with one mission in mind: to find out additional information, even if it’s small.
The main goal is to apprehend the person or people suspected of shooting and killing Kiara Jenkins, 36, nearly a month ago.
Police in Chicago said she was shot and died while going down an alley on her way to church at 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 18. CPD and Crime Stoppers communicated with neighbors and distributed flyers with Jenkins’ image to raise awareness of the case. The nicest part is that when we speak with these folks, they serve as the community’s eyes and ears,” Rutherford added.
According to a CBS News Chicago investigation, Jenkins remained in the alley for 10 hours before police arrived, despite the fact that an off-duty officer reported the bullets fired right away. I believe the family deserves to know. Where were the police? “Where was the response?” an anonymous neighbor inquired.
The neighbor said that none of the alley cameras captured police arriving, despite the fact that police reported they closed the case at 5:08 a.m. that day. Police arrived at 3 p.m., as seen by surveillance cameras. According to the neighbor, if police had responded to the 911 call, they may have heard it and helped the situation. “We haven’t heard anything, and we haven’t seen any family or anything,” another neighbor stated.
Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for any leads regarding Jenkins’ death. I know money would not bring her back, but it does provide some closure for the family,” Rutherford said.
As they continue to demand answers.” “Right now, it’s this homicide; tomorrow, it could be someone else’s,” Rutherford explained.
In addition to Jenkins’ investigation, Crime Stoppers went to the location of an unsolved homicide in the Greater Grand Crossing area.
Investigators went door-to-door on South Hartwell Avenue, looking for leads in a nearly three-year-old cold case.
Phillip Meadors was fatally shot at a house party in April 2023.
A $10,000 prize is given for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in both cases.